Disclaimer: Don't own Gundam Wing or The Parent Trap.

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The Maxwell Trap

by Dorothy Winner

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Escaping the gravitational field of the Earth, Heidi discovered, was not a very pleasant experience. She had barely managed to keep the contents of her stomach down during the shuttle launch; it was only by sheer force of will that she did not ask the stewardess for a motion sickness bag. It was all worth it, however, when the shuttle emerged through the atmosphere and she saw outer space for the first time. She peered eagerly out of her porthole, mesmerized by its sheer vastness. "Wow," she whispered to herself. "I never imagined it would be so amazing out here."

As exciting as it was to be flying through outer space, though, Heidi was more excited to be finally meeting her dad. The night before they left camp, Heidi and Sydney had made a bet on which parent would figure out the switch first; Heidi, of course, insisting it would be their mom, while Sydney insisted that it would be their dad. Heidi giggled, positive that Sydney would owe her ten credits at the end of the summer…

"We are now approaching L2," the captain announced over the intercom. Heidi looked out the porthole again as the shuttle flew past the moon and the L2 cluster came into view. Heidi gazed in awe at the enormous metal structures floating in space. She counted three colonies in all as the shuttle made its approach to the one in the center.

"Please remain seated until the shuttle has come to a complete stop," the captain stated. Heidi saw a shuttle bay open in the side of the colony and two white dotted lines light up. The shuttle slowed down and Heidi felt the sensation of being pulled in as the shuttle entered the docking bay. The bay doors behind them shut and Heidi couldn't see anything outside the shuttle except for a series of blinking white lights. The shuttle continued to slow down as another set of doors opened and they entered the brightly lit shuttle terminal. The shuttle slowed to a stop next to an open exit ramp.

"Please remove all personal belongings from the shuttle and proceed to the exit in an orderly fashion. Thank you for flying with us," said the captain. Heidi eagerly unbuckled her seat belt and got up. She opened the overhead compartment to get her duffel bag when she suddenly lost her balance and found herself sprawled on the floor in the middle of the aisle. "Ow! What is going on?!"

A nearby stewardess helped Heidi get up. "The gravity here on the colony is slightly less than that of Earth. Are you new here?"

"Yeah," said Heidi. "Er, that is, I'm not supposed to be, but… it's kinda complicated."

"I won't pry," said the stewardess. "Since it is your first time though, would you like some help getting off the shuttle?"

"Really? Thanks," said Heidi. The stewardess helped her retrieve her duffel bag and guided her to the exit and down the exit ramp. Heidi had the vague sensation that her feet weren't quite attached to the ground. "It can be very disorienting the first time around," said the stewardess, "but you'll get your colony legs in a couple of days."

'Colony legs?'

They came to a pair of glass double doors. "Opening airlock doors," said an automated voice. "Stand clear." There was a hiss and the glass doors parted. A small breeze with a slightly metallic scent hit Heidi. "Ugh, what is that smell?"

"It's the recycled air they use on the colony," said the stewardess. "Don't worry, it's perfectly breathable. You won't even notice the smell after a few days… Think you can go from here?"

"I think so," said Heidi. "Thanks very much for your help." She and the stewardess parted ways as Heidi walked down the rest of the ramp.

Colony life was definitely something that was going to take getting used to, Heidi decided. "Well, here goes nothing," she said to herself. She took a deep breath and entered the terminal.

~*~

Duo Maxwell squinted as he scanned the passengers disembarking off the latest shuttle flight from Earth. He checked his watch. Sydney was supposed to be on this flight, wasn't she? Duo continued to look. At last he saw her walk out of the exit ramp, looking a little lost. "Hey Sydney! Over here!"

Heidi looked in the direction from where she heard her sister's name. There was no mistaking the man with the long chestnut braid waving enthusiastically, a huge grin on his face. "Sydney! Welcome back!"

"Dad!" Heidi ran full sprint towards her father, tackling him in a huge bear hug. "I've missed you so much!"

"Hey babe, long time no see!" Duo exclaimed, picking Heidi up and swinging her around in a circle. Heidi shrieked with laughter. Duo put her down. "Whoa, what happened to your hair?"

Heidi had prepared an excuse. "It was way too hot at camp with long hair, so I cut it. A girl at camp did it for me. D'you like it?"

"Like it? You look like a million bucks," said Duo. "I can't help but feel a sense of loss, though, that you've gone ahead and cut off your daddy's trademark… I must not be cool anymore. My little girl's becoming a teenager," he said dramatically.

Heidi giggled. "You're just lucky I didn't come home with neon green hair, Dad…"

"C'mere, you rebellious wild child," said Duo, ruffling his daughter's hair fondly. "Ya ready to go home, babe?"

Heidi smiled up at her dad and hooked her arm through his. "Yeah. Let's go home."

~*~

Heidi and Duo left the terminal and walked out to the parking garage to Duo's black pickup truck, license plate 'SHNIGAMI.' "I love your license plate, Dad," said Heidi. "It's so… you."

"Really? You thought it was stupid when I got it," said Duo.

"I did? Oh yeah, I did. Well, I changed my mind," said Heidi. "I think it's awesome."

Duo sighed. "Man, fifteen minutes and you've already started heaping it on."

Heidi looked at him quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, whenever you want something, you always start with a compliment, and then you start begging me for whatever it is that you want… so what is it?"

"Nothing at all, Dad," said Heidi. "It's just that being away at camp has made me appreciate things that I've taken for granted. There was this girl at camp who had never met her dad her whole life. Not once," she said meaningfully. "I mean, wouldn't it be depressing, not being able to say, 'I love you, Dad,' or having your dad teach you to play sports, or go to Daddy-Daughter dances with, or to make a card for on Father's Day…"

"Uh huh."

'Man, this guy's dense,' Heidi thought. "Anyways, I'm just saying, I think it's the dad's fault for not taking the time to get to know his own daughter. I mean, she's a really great person."

"So… ya wanna have her over? Is that it?"

Heidi sweatdropped. "Um… never mind. So, did you miss me while I was away at camp?"

"Oh, I just about cried myself to sleep every night while you were gone…"

"Dad…"

"Seriously though, I really missed having you around," said Duo. "It was like there was a void or something… everyone can't wait to see you again. Anyways, how was camp?"

"Oh, it was really fun," said Heidi. "I became really good friends with this one girl. We had a lot of things in common."

"See, I told you it'd be fun. Dad's just know these things," said Duo, nodding sagely. "So, ready to get all dirty and greasy and start working in the garage again?"

"T-today?"

"I don't see why not."

"But… I don't want to get my clothes dirty."

"Whoa, did I accidentally send you off to one of Relena's ladies' schools or something? You were never one to be afraid of getting a little dirtied up once in a while…"

Heidi began making things up out of the top of her head as she went. "Um… um, actually, the thing is… I think I might have gotten a little rusty while I was at camp…"

"Rusty? You've been in the garage ever since you could walk… 'sides, there's really not much else you can do for the rest of the summer besides work in there…"

"Don't we have a computer?" Heidi asked hopefully.

"I threw the last one out the window, remember?"

"How horrible! I mean, it was a stupid piece of junk anyway," Heidi added quickly.

"Well, there's always Jeff's, but that's just got the finances on it. You've always hated computers anyway…"

"Well yeah, it's just… I don't think I've given them enough of a chance," said Heidi. "Or, you know, I can try to fix the one we have…"

"Good luck there, I smashed up that monitor pretty good…" Duo turned onto another street. "Here we are."

"Oh my gosh." Maxwell's Scrapyard and Repair was an extensive, thriving business. Heidi didn't have to be an accountant to figure out that her dad's company made a lot of money. The place was bustling with activity, Duo's team of Sweepers hard at work, yelling directions and carting off truckloads of scrap to the scrap pile.

"Yeah, we got tons of stuff out there," said Duo as he drove in. "I've still got a couple of guys bringing in more later this week. I've already got a bunch of clients interested in parts and repairs… and who knows, maybe I'll be able to find the right parts to finish that engine that I've been working on."

"Engine?" Heidi asked.

"You know, that extra Vernier engine from Deathscythe that I've had lying around. I'm modifying it so I can get it to power a shuttle. Howard and I are still trying to figure out the right power output so it can fly at maximum speed without blowing the whole shuttle up. According to Howard's calculations though, if it works we can go from here to Earth in ten minutes. I'm hopin' to get a patent on it." Duo drove past the repair garage and parked in front of the house. He got out and walked around to Heidi's side, opening the door for her. "Welcome home, babe!"

Heidi stepped out of the truck and looked up at the house, immediately liking it. Although simple in design like most colonial buildings, it was two stories high, wide and spacious. Howard and the Sweepers lived in a house adjacent to it, which was similar in style and design. A concrete patio was in between the two houses, with a long picnic table in the middle and a large, brick barbecue grill built into the concrete. She stood there for several moments, taking it all in.

"Hey, why're you so quiet?" asked Duo. "Something wrong?"

Her eyes misting, Heidi hugged her dad only for the second time in her life. "I'm just so glad to be home."

~*~

TBC…