A/N I meant to post this days ago but ff.net was down so I couldn't. anyhow I need to post this before the next chapter of Moving Ahead because it fits in between the last chapter and the next one of that- got it? Good, me neither. No one has been able to tell me who my pictures of Tara and Drew are and I'm getting really desperate now- I have to acknowledge who they are in a disclaimer. PLEASE HELP.

Chapter 6 (Alongside Seizing the day)

 Fate in the hands of the willing.

Pix walked up and down the corridor waiting for Chance to be alone again. She had been with someone all day and it really was starting to get on his nerves.

Every time he had caught a glimpse of her she looked miserable and he wanted so desperately to put his arms around her and hug her to him.

He wasn't sure he liked the feeling, Manticore had never been big on the touchy-feelies, as Max called it, but it was what he wanted to do.

He heard footsteps and waited quietly as she rounded the corner.

"Night Feen." She waved and her red headed friend walked away.

He waited a second and then came out of the shadows and knocked on her door.

"Yeah?" the door opened and he pushed his way inside.

"418?"

"Pix." He corrected.

"Why Pix?"

"Max said I reminded her of a pixie- mischievous sprite."

Chance laughed "Suits you."

"Yours does to."

Her face fell and she turned away "Yeah."

"Hey Chance." He grabbed her arm "What's wrong sweetheart?"

"Nothing." She shrugged him away and moved away.

"Well tell your face because it didn't get the memo." He sat next to her on the bed. "There's been something wrong with you all day and I want to know what has put a frown on the face of the prettiest girl in Manticore."

"I'm not." She pushed him away, colouring.

"Are too." He grinned. "The very prettiest."

She tucked her hair behind her ear.

"It's nothing okay?"

"No. Not okay." His tone lost some of the joviality that it always had and she stared.

"You don't like your name." he said bluntly.

"No…I…it's…I just…I can…"

"Pick a sentence and go with it."

She sighed frustrated "No I don't. I don't want to be Chance."

"It's just a name, you can choose another." He offered sadly but she shook her head.

"No I can't because no matter what I will always be Chance. Always be the accident, the girl who can't walk from one end of the corridor to the other without falling over."

"Ah." Pix realised what had upset her.

She stood up and moved away from him, facing the wall.

"It wasn't that," he started but an abrupt wave of her hand cut him off.

"No I get it, I'm Chance, a freak occurrence that happens to people catching them unawares." She spun to look at him "Do you know what it's like Pix? To be like this? I'm supposed to be a genetically engineered super soldier but I can't even get through basic drills without screwing up. I have no feline grace or leopardian elegance. Everyone knows it and they make fun of me all of the time, not caring how I feel about it. Biggs is my brother and he laughs at me for being clumsy. Does he think that I enjoy it huh?"

To his horror a tear sprang up in her eyes.

"Does he think that I want to be a screw up? That I enjoy not being selected for missions and teams because I can't walk in a straight line?  Yet I can't say anything because he loves me and I have to be the good one, the nice one. I try so hard and yet every single time I fall behind I get reminded, oh don't worry it's just 511 she's always screwing up and now…and NOW I have this brand new name like a huge arrow over my head calling me an inept, clueless airhead. All hail Chance the queen of klutz. I wish I was perfect, I wish I could just do anything right, anything. I cou-"

Pix tugged her towards him and covered her mouth with his own cutting off her words.

Her eyes opened wide as his soft lips slanted over hers and deepened the kiss. Her eyes gently drifted shut as she felt his hands run through her hair and hold the back of her head.

Pix's world spun as he tasted the sweet taste of Chance. She was like strawberries and cream and he couldn't get enough. He ran his hands up the smoothness of her arms and into her thick luxuriant hair. He cupped the back of her head angling her so that he could go deeper and explore her mouth at his leisure. Her shocked stance melted into him and he could feel her all along his chest, moulding into him and fitting into his hard lines with every soft curve.

He pulled away slightly and grinned at the close-eyed dumbfounded look on her face.

"W-what was that?"

"That was perfect." He licked his teeth "See you can do something right. In fact," he leaned in close "I'd say you were a natural at it."

Chance caught her breath as his eyes darkened in intensity.

"Chance." He whispered, his lips barely a hairs breadth away from hers. She shivered and he brought his hand up to touch her cheek.

"I named you. Not Max or any of the others. I named you because it was fate…pure chance that we met when we did. And I bless fate every day that we did."

Chance blinked "You named me?"

Pix nodded and stroked her cheek "But if you want to change it."

"No." she shook her head, her mind spinning. He had chosen her name. He didn't think that she was a screw up. He had been sent to solitary for her and he had named her, not from accident but for fate.

That she liked.

"I'd better get back." He brushed his lips softly over hers and stepped back, clenching his hands into fists.

She nodded abstractly as she felt him move away.

He chuckled at her distracted face and opened the door.

He was about to leave when he heard her.

"Chance as in fate?"

"Yeah." he glanced over his shoulder as she bit her lip.

"I like it."

He left the room grinning like an idiot.

~~~~~~~~~

677 stood by her bunk waiting for the guard to finish room inspection. She wanted to sigh at how long he was taking; it was obvious that there was no contraband in her cell. There was barely room for her, let alone anything else.

 "All present and correct." He said and ticked her name off the clipboard "At ease 677."

677 nodded as if there was never any doubt. There wasn't, she had always been a good soldier and that had shown in all of her test scores and it was the reason that she was sent out on missions earlier than any others.

There was a knock on her cell door and another guard walked in.

"677 Madam Renfro has asked for your presence."

She saluted and followed him out inwardly groaning.

Her long dark blonde hair hung down her back limply and she could feel it like straw. She needed to wash it, having spent a harrowing three days in the middle of nowhere where daily washing had been last on the list of priorities and she needed nothing more than to shower. She had only just returned from her latest assignment this afternoon and hadn't had time to do anything yet. She ached for a hot shower and some food but it would have to wait until the director was done.

She was ushered into Renfro's office and the door shut behind her.

"AH 677. How was Texas?"

"Hot ma'am." she answered truthfully and Renfro smiled.

"Yes I imagine it would be. It's quite a recommendation you know 677, being sent out ahead of all of the other squads, even before Special Ops on missions."

"I am aware of the honour Ma'am." 677 answered.

"Good, good." Renfro steepled her hands in front of her face and stared at the beautiful blonde transgenic.

"I have your file here 6-77, very impressive and you were a shoe in for Special Ops, why weren't you chosen?"

677 took a breath "I more than excelled at Field Operations and medical so I have been utilised as field surgeon and doctor in missions for the military. At the time of testing I was in the Congo with the US army. I returned after the choices were made."

"I see." Renfro smiled "So if you weren't so great, you'd be in Special Ops."

"Ma'am." 677 replied, not sure what this had to do with. She had found at an early age that she was natural at diagnosing what was wrong with someone and finding ways to fix it. Their field med studies had been so easy it was almost a joke for her and her tutors, once they realised her abilities, had her reporting to various Government factions as surgeon and doctor. She had been on more missions than all of her squad put together and it had made relations slightly strained between them as they grew jealous.

She had been upset that she had missed on her chance to be in Special Ops as by the time she had returned from her mission they had already been selected.

Renfro leaned forward and a pure predatory smile graced her angular features.

"I have a proposition for you 677, listen carefully."

~~~~~~~~

Chance spent the next few days in a whirl, they had been kept so busy that she had no free time and she wasn't so sure that it was a bad thing. Whenever she got a few minutes to herself the one thought resounded in her head.

He kissed me!

It had been her first kiss and it had sent her senses into a spin and her head was still reeling.

Since that night she had tried to talk about it but every time she even tried to bring up the subject with either Feen or Max, she coloured and couldn't go through with it. What was she supposed to say?

"Oh hey Max, Pix kissed me. Does he do that often or am I special?" or how about

"Feen, this guy from Special Ops kissed me. Ummm okay?"

Yes because they were really non-embarrassing ways of bringing the subject.

Besides it had been hard to find Max alone these days. It turned out that Dek, Emma and B.J also had peculiar sleeping habits and they had started to join her and Max late at night for their chat sessions.

Not that Chance minded, Emma was a little forthright but mostly nice, she was wary of Dek's dark humour and B.J was a little moody but together Dek and B.J made her laugh so hard her sides felt like they'd split.

So she hadn't had anyone to really talk about it with. Not that it mattered much because it seemed that she had scared him off. He had seemingly been avoiding her for the past few days in fact…

Her cell door swung open and the very object of her thoughts raced in and scanned the room quickly.

"Hey Chance you have to do something for me,"

"What"

"Hide this!" he tossed something at her and then raced out of the cell. Chance heard footsteps coming down the hall and quickly hurried over to her bunk, throwing whatever it was under her blanket and dropping down to do some push- ups.

She heard the footsteps stop and then someone looked in her window, she ignored them and began counting out loud.

"One hundred twenty three, one hundred twenty four…"

The shadow at the grate disappeared and she heard them walk away.

She stopped her push ups and knelt next to the bed, lifting away the blanket to see what he had given her.

It was a bundle of papers…official looking papers with the Manticore seal and lists of training sessions. Her heart sunk.

Pix had stolen the trainers training notes and schedules. Without these they wouldn't know which class they were teaching and where or what time. They'd all be late and missing throwing the whole day into confusion.

Chance knew he wanted to live up to his name but this was ridiculous.

Her lips twitched.

The only sound heard down the long corridor was of one girl laughing.

~~~

Drew frowned at Emma and Coco as they waited, and waited. It wasn't like the trainers to be so late for sessions. They prided themselves on punctuality and they tried to instil the same into the transgenics.

She leaned over "Shouldn't someone be here by now?"

Emma shrugged and tapped Max on the shoulder.

"Hey Max, what gives with the trainer?"

Pix turned and grinned "Maybe he got lost."

Max's eyes narrowed in suspicion "Pix?"

He blinked innocently and they all knew instantly that whatever it was that he was right in the middle of it all.

"Oh you are so in trouble if we get sent to solitary." Coco slapped his head.

Max glanced around and sighed "Well I for one am not wasting this beautiful day waiting around for a trainer."

"Nor me." Alec said and they stalked out in front of Special Ops.

With a cheeky glint Max placed her hands on her hips

"Awl-right you buncha gurlies."

Emma burst out laughing as Max imitated Trainer Hedges.

"Eyes Front!" Alec pointed to her and she snapped back to attention, playing along.

"Sir yes sir!"

"So we have a sit0u-a-shun. Our trainer is aw-ahl. Whut do we do huh?"

"Redeploy sir!" they chorused.

"Awl- righty!"

Emma looked up to see Alec as he tried so hard but couldn't keep his face straight as Max mimicked the broad accent of the man and waggled her hips. His shoulders shook and she could see several other members of Special Ops doing the same. She bit her lip trying to suck in the laughter as tiny Max mocked the burly Trainer.

Max, however, loved it.

Drew shook her head as Max launched into a typical Training session. She had them start with basic drills, formations and stances, all while maintaining the ridiculous accent.

Emma and Sunny both looked one step away from hysterics and B.J had given in and was rolling around on the floor in laughter.

Zan, Flex and Pix were gamely trying to play along but having to slow down their drills as they held their sides.

Anna had rolled her eyes and shared a supercilious glance with Carrot acting like they were unamused and above the behaviour but Drew could see twinkles in both of their eyes.

 Coco just shook her head and followed the drills, a small smile playing over her mouth.

Sweet but serious Aiden just looked confused, unsure if it was respectful to laugh but finding the whole thing more bemusing than amusing and Dek was grinning widely just going along with it.

 Drew let her gaze fall to Mets who was laughing as he punched the air but trying hard not to show it. His grey issue shirt was stretched over his muscles and his dark hair fell into his eyes. Drew's fingers itched to push it away but she snapped herself back to the drills.

She had managed to make it into Special Ops by the skin of her teeth and some fancy footwork. In truth she hadn't been sure that she would make it and had fears that Dek would leave her alone. They had been best friends since she could recall and she didn't want him to go anywhere without her. So she had worked night and day that week to make sure that the trainers saw her advance. She was alright in the physical department, her athletic and muscled physique coming from constant fights with the males. One of the staff had once called her a Tim boy or was it tomboy, whatever one of those was.  She had excelled in physical training and athleticism but it was the science part that she had trouble with. So night after night she had stayed in the labs pouring over chemistry and biology texts. The outcome was that she had gotten to stay with Dek. But she wouldn't let anyone say that she hadn't earned it and so she continued to push herself to work harder. Thankfully the environment and the people she was with made that easier. They were all friends now, friends and coworkers and she cherished that.

But whatever happened she wasn't going to let some soulful blue eyes and Italian dark looks steal her away from her deserved position, so focus soldier!

She completed the form that Max had set out and continued to the next.

Carrot thought that it was possible he would erupt any minute. If Max didn't stop doing that ridiculous accent and waggling her hands he knew that he would have to give up any pretence of being mature and roll around on the floor with B.J. she was hilarious and he knew from the sounds around him that he wasn't the only one who thought so, even staid Aiden was beginning to crack a smile.

He brought his arms up in a standard block and was about to sweep down when he heard the door creak.

Max had also heard it and she dropped the accent straightaway. Alec pushed away from the wall that he was leaning against to stop his own laughter and joined her in the final rotations, the smile leaving his face immediately.

B.J jumped off the floor and stood in line finishing off the final drill as heels could be heard clicking into the tiles room.

"Attention!" Max called and the sound of fifteen feet stamping on the hard floor echoed loudly into the room.

"At ease." Renfro said as she clicked her way across the room "Where is Trainer Hedges?"

"Unknown Ma'am. He didn't show up." Max reported, her eyes forward.

The blonde woman looked puzzled "And you were?"

"Making use of resources and time ma'am."

"I see." Renfro looked around at the faces in front of her. Special Ops had taken the initiative and continued with basic drills, promising. It showed that they were capable of logical thought and acting without being ordered, it was something to put into her latest report anyway.

"Well carry on. I just came to inform 494 that there has been an addition to your Unit. 677, the field medic has been transferred to Unit 8.  She should be joining you tonight."

Alec's face was impassive as he intoned "Yes ma'am."

"Continue." Renfro gestured and Max turned back to them.

"Standard formation 5. Left side one two."

"HYAH!" They chorused as they brought their left fists out in a chop.

Renfro stayed through half of the drill watching Max and Alec as they passed command from one to the other.

Special Ops had no idea what she was thinking as a small smirk hung on her face and eventually she turned and walked away.

Max waited until they could no longer hear the clatter of heels on the tiles and stooped yelling drill commands.

She turned to Alec who shrugged knowing what she was going to ask him.

"Beats me."

"I thought that transfers were stopped a few years ago?" Sunny asked confused.

"It did." Alec nodded "They decided that the Units had to be able to trust each other and quit moving them around so much."

"So why move 677 now?"

"Do I look like Psy-Ops?" Coco rolled her eyes at them.

"Well Tara is a great field med." Max shrugged "If she works well with Unit 8 then hey she's welcome right Alec?"

He nodded chewing on his bottom lip.

Dek walked over to him watching him closely.

"Alec?"

Dek had known Alec as long as he could remember. He had been part of Alec's unit back even before he had met Drew. He knew when his serious C.O was over thinking.

"Hey." Alec turned his serious eyes to him.

"Whatcha thinking?"

"677- Tara is an asset but the team has grown so close to Special Ops recently. I don't really know how well she'll fit in." he sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

Dek let his sardonic grin loose and clapped Alec on the back "She's a big girl Alec, she'll sink or swim."

Alec frowned "That's what I'm afraid of."

Before Dek could answer him the door was pushed opened and the red faced Trainer walked in, his face like thunder.

Pix winced.

"Oops."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

nat452- Just that Biggs sees himself as her big brother and he wont be too impressed with Pix! Watch this space!

Kim- I know it's much easier for me too! I get what you mean I dislike the actors therefore bad characters. mwah ha ha.

Freedom Angel- Don't be unhappy! I updated Coming to Terms first, I thought I'd neglected it for long enough.

Raven- How was that for setting the girl straight? Now if Pix comforted me like that! sigh.

Feenian- Hope the comfort was as good as you thought.

 Sigma1- Better late than never and always appreciated. Glad that you haven't lost interest.

Nat1- she does now!!

Ting- He doesn't want to tease her…at least not like that!

Ganko- Read my mind pet. Now read the chappie- what d'ya think?

Moonlight- Ok that's much easier- waiting patiently- you? LOL, okay then 871? Oh Ash, yeah watch out for that. As for Dek well he's here now. I know I got the designations as mixed up as everyone! Can you believe it! my own characters! ah well. Some characters have minds of their own and when I want them to do something they do something else completely! Damn them!

 Messymissy- Got it in one. Max likes to tease Pix- wouldn't you? Techie will make more of an impact soon- you'll see and I adored your prank. Classic idea that I have to use- thank you so much!

Lyndsay- Much less confusing for me too- and way to be subtle girl!

Cloudburst- Kudos indeed. Thank you, he can be your big brother if you want! I didn't realise how great he would be as a big brother until then but now- ain't he sweet?  Double the pleasure but damn if it isn't double the trouble! LOL, just as well I'm enjoying it isn't it.

Anna Kristina- Techie has a long way to go before he pushes away the shyness and we get to see more of him soon.

Elfie- Glad you do, especially since this didn't house a great deal of M/A, if you like the original characters more its kudos to me so thank you. Yeah they aren't clones it was just Zan's joke. I don't want clones- I have enough trouble keeping them straight as is!