Gravity Zero

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

Part Zero-One: Reckless Fire - Chapter 2

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

---

"Heero, I have an idea."

"I never would have guessed," he said, with a hint of sarcasm. He didn't know whether the pretend light bulb above her head or her eyes shined brighter. Usually when she came out like this, her ideas were good ones that would work, no matter how bizarre. She could turn the sky orange and keep it that way if she worked hard enough at it.

"Remember me telling you about the time my convertible broke down?" Heero shook his head. He was tempted to ask which one? but two lines of sarcasm in a row wasn't his style. One was funny, two was just rude.

"No."

"Oh, well... " She took a second to recollect her thoughts and get back on topic before her idea went astray.

"Do you have a problem with your car, ma'am?" said an approaching young woman as Relena struggled to get her vehicle running. It was Hilde Schbeiker, the head mechanic at the vocational arts school just down the street. She wore a button down tan shirt with a blue scarf wrapped around her neck, which made her look like a biker, almost. Relena wouldn't put it past her; rumor had it, there was nothing this woman couldn't ride, and nothing she couldn't fix. She was Wufei Chang's biggest rival.

What on earth was she doing here, though?

Could a coincidence like this really be possible? Especially after that argument with Wufei the previous night? Could this be fate in the works?

Hilde just stood there grinning, as if waiting for something, but what? What could a girl like that possibly want with...

... FrrrRrrrRRR...

The engine just wouldn't start.

Hilde's grin got bigger.

Relena could see why she was a worthy adversary; she was bold. It was rare that a girl like her would approach the mayor's daughter with such a calm face, but at the moment, it didn't really matter. Relena had more important things to worry about. She rattled the key around in the ignition with more frustration now.

The engine backfired for what seemed like the hundredth time that day, and Relena's temples were already throbbing with frustration and anxiety. She was already late for her parents' twenty-fifth anniversary as it was...

"Yes, certainly I do," she responded, trying not to let her plaintive tone break loose. In all her frustration, she felt as if she were choking on fire, and her eyes welled with tears. If only the battery in her cell phone hadn't died, then she would've called Heero up and asked for a lift. It wasn't an easy situation, but she supposed walking home wouldn't kill her; it wouldn't make her as late as just sitting there and making futile attempts to get the engine going.

In front of a mechanic, no less.

... Wait...

"Mind if I take a look at it?"

It was like Hilde had read her mind. Relena gave a small nod, not knowing what else to say. The girl headed back to her truck to grab a toolbox, and sprinted back once she had it in hand.

"My name's Hilde Schbeiker, by the way," she stated, before she dove under the hood to fix the problem. Within minutes, Relena's engine roared to life, and she smiled at the female mechanic.

"My name is Relena Peacecraft. I'm pleased to make your acquaintance, Ms. Schbeiker." Hilde's smile grew quite a few watts when the rich blonde shook her hand. "Thank you for fixing my car."

Hilde waved it off as if she'd merely helped the girl tie her shoes and handed Relena her toolbox as a parting gift. "You take that and keep it. My work number's on the side. Give me a call if you have anymore troubles."

"So, you're suggesting we get a professional to take on the rest of this job after all?" Heero asked, sounding both surprised and skeptical. The thought of some stranger touching Zero made him uneasy, though he was one who suggested it in the first place out of pure frustration. He was already regretting the slip; Zero was not to be touched by just anyone, after all. If someone were to find out something they shouldn't...

... Heero couldn't bare the thought.

"No way. I'm going to call Hilde and ask her to teach me how it's done."

Heero's gaze locked on her's, as a lame attempt to read her mind. He had no idea what brewed in that head of her's sometimes, and quite frankly, this didn't sound good either. If he couldn't show her how it's done, who could?

She eyes turned from his with jubilant glow, and she dialed up the number on the side of the box.

"Can't do it?" Heero's couldn't take his eyes off her now. She looked disappointed, until the the chitter on the other line revived some hope in her eyes. It took a few minutes, but Relena's face sucked itself into a satisfied state; not quite content, yet not doomed. She stuck her phone back into her pocket after exchanging brief goodbyes with Hilde.

"Hilde's... going abroad to a wedding in three days. She won't be back for about a month."

In short, she couldn't do it, yet Heero could already feel the alternative coming. "A month, you said?"

"Her... wife's brother is getting married." Relena's contemplative mood was on. "I can't believe she's already married... "

"You're getting married next year."

"Yes, but... never mind."

Hilde was indeed bold. A woman with a wife, approaching the perfect, doting, conservative mayor's daughter as if they were old buddies. That was something Relena had to respect in Hilde; it was also something she'd never forget.

She took a moment to collect her thoughts before starting over again. The air was getting thicker by the minute, and she had an uncomfortable cramp at the pit of her stomach. "Listen, she has a cousin coming over from New York who's also a mechanic. She's going to ask him to help us in her place."

Heero's eyes narrowed. He was not pleased.

---

"Here you go, Nala," said Catherine smiling sweetly. She filled the last cat dish with food and watched her four plump felines feast on the extra goodies they'd received. For the most part, the trailer had been completely cleaned up. Every wayward bra and tampon wrapper was picked up, and the floor was vacuumed, so there was less animal hair on everything. She had her suit cases all packed and stored in the trunk. All she needed now was the wife and the babysitter.

She stuck her "to do" list on the 'fridge, which consisted of times to feed the cats, which days to clean their boxes, when to walk the dog, what time to cover the birds, which room in the trailer it was safe to let the hamsters run in their exercise balls, and who to call if the ants decided to take refuge in the doorway again. Hilde's cousin happened to be close to her brother's groom, yet claimed to be the only one who could efficiently maintain her "zoo," so he offered without a second thought.

"You're one in a million, Duo."

Just as she muttered that, none other than the man of the hour and the wife appear in the doorway, each carrying one suitcase. Cathy couldn't help but giggle at their matching black tank tops and blue jeans; they usually planned silly stuff like that over the phone while no one else was around. They were engaged in a conversation about sticking a whole bag of Lays potato chips in the microwave of all things until Hilde was cut off by a kiss. Her and Duo could go on for hours at the rate they were going; that and Hilde rushed out the door to collect him as soon as she was out of bed, forgetting her good morning kiss in the process.

"Well, it's about time you got here, big guy," said Catherine, pulling Duo into a brief hug. "I don't know how to thank you enough. I know Quatre'll be missing you there."

"Don't worry about it, Cathy. Sparky'd bite just any old idiot's hand off, you know that," responded Duo, referring to the large, red and yellow attack parrot in the other room. The three stood silently for a moment, letting the current situation sink in. In three days, Duo'd have the trailer to himself for a whole month, while the girls attended an old friend's wedding out in Madrid. "Besides, work in The Apple doesn't pay as well as the movies say. I barely made enough to pay for the gas."

"I owe you big time. Sorry Gravity needed to be towed," said Hilde. She held and expression of guilt on her face for... all of maybe thirty seconds, until Duo's forgiving smile became too much to bare. He just had that affect on people.

He waved it off as if it were nothing and took a seat on the couch. A fat, orange cat crawled right onto his lap and he unconsciously began to stroke behind it's ears.

As Cathy headed off to stick Duo's things in the guest bedroom, Hilde took a seat beside him and pulled out a folded piece of lined paper.

"If you'd like to hit the jackpot, the mayor's daughter is in a little predicament," whispered Hilde, in a mock-mobster accent. Duo nodded and looked the note over. The project looked interesting, and the price was just right. That was a year's supply of three course meals he held in his hands, and he smirked.

"Peacecraft, huh? I wonder if she's related to Milliardo Peacecraft."

"How did you know?"

"He had a flat during vacation."

"... Figures."

Before the conversation could proceed farther down the road, Cathy appeared while brushing white cat fur off her sleeves. "Sorry if the smell of carpet freshener's a bit strong in there. That's the room I taught some of my babies to do their business in."

"Um, honey, I think Duo would've been better off not knowing that," said Hilde, chuckling. Duo smiled and shook his head. He felt right at home with these two ladies. He wished they wouldn't be traveling abroad before they could start some serious catching up, but he decided to cherish his time with them instead.

"You girls up for a ride?"

Both looked slightly perplexed at the offer, and Hilde asked, "but... wasn't your car just towed?"

"Oh yeah, that." He smirked and rose to his feet. "There's a bus station near-by, huh?" The two nodded simultaneously, and he was already on his way out the door. "On the way to Chang's, I'm gonna tell you the story of how he and I became buddies a few years back... "

---

Relena looked up at Heero as he tapped away under the hood with one arm, and placed the book she'd been engrossed aside.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead, then went right back in.

"It'd take a miracle for you to fix that by yourself, especially since you're single-handed."

"Yeah- it'd take a miracle for you," he retorted, feeling pretty frustrated with the whole situation. He was well aware that not only was he single-handed at the moment, but he wasn't going to become a sufficient lefty anytime soon.

"At least I can handle it." Her tone was simple, yet at the same time, it had enough force to break the skin of a shark. The thing that added more weight to her words was the blunt truth behind them.

"Some dumb shit's going to get his filthy hands on my Zero." He tossed the wrench aside and clenched his fist. He wanted to hit something, the car, the wall, his broken arm, but he needed to heal, and fast. Broken bones didn't suit him, and soon was going to cost him something he treasured more than anything.

She sighed. "Heero, you haven't even met the guy and you already hate him."

His eyes were downcast, cold. Not just anyone could lay a finger on his car. No one dared. That vehicle had been an extension of himself since the moment he dug it out of that old, abandoned warehouse. So many boxes, newspapers, and rats; not to mention the walls were all covered in mold and spiders. Zero was something he earned when he eagerly dug it out of its filth-laden prison, as well as a crazy old fool's only gift to him. It was such a unique car, that one only as crazy as its creator could get the basic gist of. No random, sleazy, dickwad from Bum-Fuck New York could even begin to understand to functions of Zero.

"Look," started Relena, as she pulled up her own crate and took a seat. "I know this car means a lot to you, but don't you think you could give Miss Hilde's cousin a chance?"

"Do I have a choice?"

"Heero... " she shifted herself into a more comfortable position. "I gave Miss Hilde a chance. Why not give her cousin a chance?"

"I don't trust him."

"You don't trust anyone."

"I know."

Heero stood and headed into the house, ignoring the box of empty soda cans that spilled as he slammed the door behind him. What he needed was time, and maybe a nice bath to cool him off. It was very humid, compared to the past few weeks of relatively cool weather.

Relena headed home, hoping that Heero would come around just a little in time to meet the mechanic known as Duo Maxwell.

TBC

A/N: Heh-heh, feel sorry for Heero, damn it! I was forced to become a lefty for nine weeks when I broke my arm back in forth grade. IT SUCKED.

Yes, is this story kinda giving you all the WTF's? Like, why Cathy owns so many pets, or why Relena's a tomboy? Well, I'll tell you, it's both an attempt at being unique, and a building block for a much deeper plot to come. Come on, you think you know all about the characters now? Hehehehe...

THANK YOU for the reviews. I hope to be seeing much more; feedback gives me the warm fuzzies. I apologize if there's any spelling/grammar errors in this, I'm a typo queen! It's a miracle I can manage such good grades in English class, really (as for beta-readers, if you think I honestly can't manage without one, let me know. I'll hunt one down just in case, despite a long and frustrating history I've had with some of 'em.)

Random Fact of the Day: I have a crush on Eiji Kikumaru from Prince of Tennis. Very useless information, I know! (But he's so cute... )