"Training Day"
*******************
"I don't need no fightin' lessons from some overgrown Girl Scout," Clutch protested. As the resident male chauvinist pig, his teammates volunteered him for the training demonstration for their entertainment.
"Why not, Clutch? It seems fitting since you throw a punch like a girl," Scarlett snarled at him. "Come on tough guy, show me and this team what you're made of."
"Fine, but I'm twice your size so don't say I didn't warn 'ya." Clutch took a swing at Scarlett. She caught his wrist then as she towered him over the mat, used his weight as an anchor while she made a quick tap to his leg with her foot instead of following through with full force - after all this was a demonstration. "I just broke your leg. And haven't you heard? Size doesn't matter, which should be good news to you, right? Any other volunteers?" Scarlett asked as she released Clutch's wrist, dropping him on the mat. Duke confidently walked up. "Master Sergeant! Are you sure?"
"I'm not exactly wet behind the ears in hand-to-hand combat. I can hold my own."
"You're awfully cocky, Hauser. How did you get to be so cocky?"
"Been there done that, O'Hara," he warned her as he grabbed her from behind. For a split second she was hesitant to fight him. His powerful muscular arms around her actually felt rather nice.
"Well you didn't do it in MY class, Top," she retorted as she heel stomped his foot, causing him to involuntarily let go of her momentarily then she delivered a backwards elbow strike to the face followed by a swooping kick to the back of his legs, causing them to give out from underneath him.
"Heh, think you can do that twice?" He challenged her as he got back up and charged towards her. She caught him by his wrists then placing one foot on his diaphragm, rolled onto her back and flipped him over her. She quickly jumped back on her feet.
"I know I can. Care to make a friendly wager on it?"
"What did you have in mind?" He asked as he recovered back on his feet.
"If I win, I get to command a mission, AND I want to be one of the first to fly the new Skystrikers when they come in."
"And if I win?"
"If YOU win? Well," she said in a sultry tone as she pushed her hip out to the side and tossed her ponytail then lowered her voice so the others wouldn't hear, "you get to sleep with me." Dumbfounded by her proposition, Duke dropped his jaw and his guard - BAM! Scarlett immediately used the opportunity to side kick him in the chest, then as soon as he fell backwards to the ground she dropped her elbow down on his throat, stopping at just an inch above his windpipe for demonstration purposes. He lay on the ground, trying to catch his breath as he looked at the beautiful redhead hovering just inches above him. He couldn't help cracking a tiny smile at her.
"You're dead," she told him, causing his smile to disappear. She stood back up then announced to the class, "All right, that's enough for today. You're dismissed." The Joes filed out of the gym then Scarlett noticed that Duke was still on the ground where she left him. She walked over to him and saw that he was still trying to catch his breath. It was fairly common to need several minutes to recompose after a kick like that.
"Need a hoist, Top?" She extended her hand to help him back up. He reached up for her offered hand and yanked her down to the ground then rolled her over, pinning her arms and legs down.
"Ungh! You stinker!"
"A Cobra soldier has just overpowered you. Now what are you gonna do?" Duke challenged her. She quickly straightened one arm above her head while simultaneously straightening the other arm down towards her feet, causing him to lose his balance above her as she rolled him over on his back again. They lay still for a moment, and a small shiver ran through her as they locked eyes while trying to catch their breath. How would this look if someone should happen to walk in at this moment, she wondered.
"Pretty good, Hauser. But you have a lot to learn," she finally stated then rolled off of him and stood back up to dust herself off. Duke sat up, looking at her in wonder.
"Would you really have - ," he started to ask apprehensively.
"No!" Scarlett laughed at him, "Because for one, I was just trying to catch you off-guard, which worked by the way. When fighting for your life, there are no rules or etiquette. You use whatever is at your disposal, materially or verbally. And two, I wasn't going to lose anyway."
"Heh, now who's being cocky?" He asked as he stood back up.
"I just call them as I see them."
"You sure you don't work for Cobra? That was a dirty trick you pulled."
"Aw, are you always such a sore loser?"
"The only thing sore about me is where you elbowed me in the face," he retorted.
"Oh, yeah that's going to leave a mark isn't it," she replied with a hint of regret in her tone as she touched his reddened jaw. His breath quickened in response to her touch then he put his hand over hers.
"It'll be fine," he reassured her as he gently put her hand back down. "I'm the one who told you not to go easy on me didn't I?"
"Well technically I told you I wouldn't and didn't give you a choice in the matter," she smirked. "But if you want that to be your story, I'll stick to it."
"Smart-ass," he chortled.
"You're welcome."
"Duke!" Gung-Ho called out from the doorway. "They need you in the control room; someone's tapping the Alaskan oil pipeline!"
"How much you wanna bet that 'someone' is Cobra?" Duke stated to Scarlett as his expression turned harsh. "Come on. Grab your favorite weapon - OTHER than your hands - to take with you."
"I'm coming with you guys?" She asked in surprise. "You're so sure already?"
"Well if you're ever going to command a mission you'll have to participate in one first," he replied, flashing a smile at her, "and I'm going to need a copilot." Scarlett beamed.
"XK-1 Power Crossbow, please."
*******************
Duke's suspicions were right, it was Cobra at the Alaskan pipeline, headed by none other than Major Bludd himself, giving them confirmation of his affiliation with the Cobra Command.
Scarlett flew back to the base with Duke, exhilarated from participating in her first mission with the team. She felt like a kid after riding her first big roller coaster - what a rush! And Duke was utterly amazing to watch in action, he was fearless and never lost his cool. The way he led his team reminded her of a maestro conducting an orchestra: smooth, precise and harmonious. Scarlett found his confidence contagious.
"You're pretty jazzed. Exciting isn't it?" Duke asked her as he flew their plane back to base.
"How could you tell?" She asked, as she wondered how he had eyes in the back of his head.
"I can see your reflection in the glass. Your glow is blinding my visual, cut it out."
"Guess that means I can't make funny faces at you," Scarlett joked, "at least not anymore."
"Heh heh heh," Duke chuckled. "Hey by the way, that was great how you handled Clutch earlier. Just so you know, not everyone on the team shares his chauvinistic belief system."
"It was nothing, really. Just one of the advantages to growing up in an all male household I suppose." Scarlett shrugged. "Father and three older brothers; the 'but I'm a girl' excuses never flew with them."
"What about your mother?"
"No mother, she died when I was seven."
"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't realize - ," Duke started to apologize. "That must have been hard for you."
"It's okay. I really don't remember much, mostly vague memories."
"Your father never remarried?"
"Nope. Then again, he had four kids as baggage, and who wants that, right? Not that he tried, it was like nobody could ever compare to her - my mom."
"My mom did a couple years after my father died, I wasn't as young as you were though - ten."
"Still too young, sorry to hear that," Scarlett commented with a hint of sorrow in her tone, though she couldn't help feeling comforted that someone understood where she was coming from. "So what was that like? Having a step parent I mean?"
"He was a good father figure and took good care of my mom - still does. I got a little half-brother out of the deal too. Vince is a Green Beret now just like his old man. He just got his commission too."
"My aren't you the proud big brother." Scarlett enjoyed listening to the pride that radiated through his tone as he talked about his little brother. "So it isn't weird to have to salute your baby brother?" She couldn't help taunting him a little. He turned around to look at her, his piercing blues narrowed on her as he feigned insult, though his lips pressed together to suppress his laughter gave him away.
"Hasn't been a problem as long as we're indoors or in our civilians," he retorted. Scarlett laughed. He turned back around to face forward again. "I am damn proud of the kid. I just wish he didn't have such a weakness for the ladies."
"As opposed to his big brother?"
"Hey."
"Hey yourself, Drink Man."
"That was an isolated incident."
"So now it was an incident?"
"Well you ran out of there like you were fleeing the scene of a crime," he chuckled at her. "What else would you call it?"
"But I - ."
"But nothing. You ran."
"Grrr."
"Well?"
"Touché," Scarlett relented, as she pondered the 'isolated' part of his 'incident' statement.
*******************
*******************
"I don't need no fightin' lessons from some overgrown Girl Scout," Clutch protested. As the resident male chauvinist pig, his teammates volunteered him for the training demonstration for their entertainment.
"Why not, Clutch? It seems fitting since you throw a punch like a girl," Scarlett snarled at him. "Come on tough guy, show me and this team what you're made of."
"Fine, but I'm twice your size so don't say I didn't warn 'ya." Clutch took a swing at Scarlett. She caught his wrist then as she towered him over the mat, used his weight as an anchor while she made a quick tap to his leg with her foot instead of following through with full force - after all this was a demonstration. "I just broke your leg. And haven't you heard? Size doesn't matter, which should be good news to you, right? Any other volunteers?" Scarlett asked as she released Clutch's wrist, dropping him on the mat. Duke confidently walked up. "Master Sergeant! Are you sure?"
"I'm not exactly wet behind the ears in hand-to-hand combat. I can hold my own."
"You're awfully cocky, Hauser. How did you get to be so cocky?"
"Been there done that, O'Hara," he warned her as he grabbed her from behind. For a split second she was hesitant to fight him. His powerful muscular arms around her actually felt rather nice.
"Well you didn't do it in MY class, Top," she retorted as she heel stomped his foot, causing him to involuntarily let go of her momentarily then she delivered a backwards elbow strike to the face followed by a swooping kick to the back of his legs, causing them to give out from underneath him.
"Heh, think you can do that twice?" He challenged her as he got back up and charged towards her. She caught him by his wrists then placing one foot on his diaphragm, rolled onto her back and flipped him over her. She quickly jumped back on her feet.
"I know I can. Care to make a friendly wager on it?"
"What did you have in mind?" He asked as he recovered back on his feet.
"If I win, I get to command a mission, AND I want to be one of the first to fly the new Skystrikers when they come in."
"And if I win?"
"If YOU win? Well," she said in a sultry tone as she pushed her hip out to the side and tossed her ponytail then lowered her voice so the others wouldn't hear, "you get to sleep with me." Dumbfounded by her proposition, Duke dropped his jaw and his guard - BAM! Scarlett immediately used the opportunity to side kick him in the chest, then as soon as he fell backwards to the ground she dropped her elbow down on his throat, stopping at just an inch above his windpipe for demonstration purposes. He lay on the ground, trying to catch his breath as he looked at the beautiful redhead hovering just inches above him. He couldn't help cracking a tiny smile at her.
"You're dead," she told him, causing his smile to disappear. She stood back up then announced to the class, "All right, that's enough for today. You're dismissed." The Joes filed out of the gym then Scarlett noticed that Duke was still on the ground where she left him. She walked over to him and saw that he was still trying to catch his breath. It was fairly common to need several minutes to recompose after a kick like that.
"Need a hoist, Top?" She extended her hand to help him back up. He reached up for her offered hand and yanked her down to the ground then rolled her over, pinning her arms and legs down.
"Ungh! You stinker!"
"A Cobra soldier has just overpowered you. Now what are you gonna do?" Duke challenged her. She quickly straightened one arm above her head while simultaneously straightening the other arm down towards her feet, causing him to lose his balance above her as she rolled him over on his back again. They lay still for a moment, and a small shiver ran through her as they locked eyes while trying to catch their breath. How would this look if someone should happen to walk in at this moment, she wondered.
"Pretty good, Hauser. But you have a lot to learn," she finally stated then rolled off of him and stood back up to dust herself off. Duke sat up, looking at her in wonder.
"Would you really have - ," he started to ask apprehensively.
"No!" Scarlett laughed at him, "Because for one, I was just trying to catch you off-guard, which worked by the way. When fighting for your life, there are no rules or etiquette. You use whatever is at your disposal, materially or verbally. And two, I wasn't going to lose anyway."
"Heh, now who's being cocky?" He asked as he stood back up.
"I just call them as I see them."
"You sure you don't work for Cobra? That was a dirty trick you pulled."
"Aw, are you always such a sore loser?"
"The only thing sore about me is where you elbowed me in the face," he retorted.
"Oh, yeah that's going to leave a mark isn't it," she replied with a hint of regret in her tone as she touched his reddened jaw. His breath quickened in response to her touch then he put his hand over hers.
"It'll be fine," he reassured her as he gently put her hand back down. "I'm the one who told you not to go easy on me didn't I?"
"Well technically I told you I wouldn't and didn't give you a choice in the matter," she smirked. "But if you want that to be your story, I'll stick to it."
"Smart-ass," he chortled.
"You're welcome."
"Duke!" Gung-Ho called out from the doorway. "They need you in the control room; someone's tapping the Alaskan oil pipeline!"
"How much you wanna bet that 'someone' is Cobra?" Duke stated to Scarlett as his expression turned harsh. "Come on. Grab your favorite weapon - OTHER than your hands - to take with you."
"I'm coming with you guys?" She asked in surprise. "You're so sure already?"
"Well if you're ever going to command a mission you'll have to participate in one first," he replied, flashing a smile at her, "and I'm going to need a copilot." Scarlett beamed.
"XK-1 Power Crossbow, please."
*******************
Duke's suspicions were right, it was Cobra at the Alaskan pipeline, headed by none other than Major Bludd himself, giving them confirmation of his affiliation with the Cobra Command.
Scarlett flew back to the base with Duke, exhilarated from participating in her first mission with the team. She felt like a kid after riding her first big roller coaster - what a rush! And Duke was utterly amazing to watch in action, he was fearless and never lost his cool. The way he led his team reminded her of a maestro conducting an orchestra: smooth, precise and harmonious. Scarlett found his confidence contagious.
"You're pretty jazzed. Exciting isn't it?" Duke asked her as he flew their plane back to base.
"How could you tell?" She asked, as she wondered how he had eyes in the back of his head.
"I can see your reflection in the glass. Your glow is blinding my visual, cut it out."
"Guess that means I can't make funny faces at you," Scarlett joked, "at least not anymore."
"Heh heh heh," Duke chuckled. "Hey by the way, that was great how you handled Clutch earlier. Just so you know, not everyone on the team shares his chauvinistic belief system."
"It was nothing, really. Just one of the advantages to growing up in an all male household I suppose." Scarlett shrugged. "Father and three older brothers; the 'but I'm a girl' excuses never flew with them."
"What about your mother?"
"No mother, she died when I was seven."
"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't realize - ," Duke started to apologize. "That must have been hard for you."
"It's okay. I really don't remember much, mostly vague memories."
"Your father never remarried?"
"Nope. Then again, he had four kids as baggage, and who wants that, right? Not that he tried, it was like nobody could ever compare to her - my mom."
"My mom did a couple years after my father died, I wasn't as young as you were though - ten."
"Still too young, sorry to hear that," Scarlett commented with a hint of sorrow in her tone, though she couldn't help feeling comforted that someone understood where she was coming from. "So what was that like? Having a step parent I mean?"
"He was a good father figure and took good care of my mom - still does. I got a little half-brother out of the deal too. Vince is a Green Beret now just like his old man. He just got his commission too."
"My aren't you the proud big brother." Scarlett enjoyed listening to the pride that radiated through his tone as he talked about his little brother. "So it isn't weird to have to salute your baby brother?" She couldn't help taunting him a little. He turned around to look at her, his piercing blues narrowed on her as he feigned insult, though his lips pressed together to suppress his laughter gave him away.
"Hasn't been a problem as long as we're indoors or in our civilians," he retorted. Scarlett laughed. He turned back around to face forward again. "I am damn proud of the kid. I just wish he didn't have such a weakness for the ladies."
"As opposed to his big brother?"
"Hey."
"Hey yourself, Drink Man."
"That was an isolated incident."
"So now it was an incident?"
"Well you ran out of there like you were fleeing the scene of a crime," he chuckled at her. "What else would you call it?"
"But I - ."
"But nothing. You ran."
"Grrr."
"Well?"
"Touché," Scarlett relented, as she pondered the 'isolated' part of his 'incident' statement.
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