Disclaimer: Gundam Wing is not mine; the series belongs to Bandai, Sunrise and load of other people I have never met. However the situations, original characters, the M-Utatek (no matter how improbable it may be) and anything else NOT original to the GW Universe is mine, any flames for any reason like pointing out that improbability will be laughed at and fed to my Plot Bunny Mkha, who will eat it and leave plenty bunny raisins for you. Not for profit, just for fun.
Started September 11th 2004
Title: Afterthoughts of Discourse
Author: Vega-Lume
Warnings: Angst, MPREG, Yaoi, Het, limey? Lemony? Mountain Dew?(Let's just say there are some citrusy parts, k?)
Beta: None.
Pairings: 2x1, 2xH, OMCx1
Archived: tumblr vegalume, ff Vega-Lume, A03 Vega_Lume
Note: Seriously, I have been stuck on this chapter for about a year and I'm not entirely happy with how it turned out, but I figured this is as good as it's gonna get. I am truly sorry if it disappoints anyone. Also all the brakes and spaces were lost. I added them in again but they just won't save here, it does read better on A03 though.
Afterthoughts of Discourse
Chapter 9
By Vel
L2
Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 27th - AC 197
"Enjoy your meal," the delivery man said with a sympathetic smile as Hilde took the heavy bag of Indian food, while behind her Duo was rocking Xiiro who seemed set on crying as loudly as she could.
"Thank you," Hilde replied, "Happy Thanksgiving."
"Same to you," The delivery guy said then turned away, walking down the hall to the elevator.
"I wish I knew what she wanted," Duo said as he stood up and started pacing as he rocked the week old baby in his arms. "She's clean and dry. Had a feed, been burped and she only woke up an hour ago."
"The doctor said that sometimes babies just need to cry," Hilde replied as she shut the door, and then moved to the kitchen to set their dinner on the counter. "But you could try her binky again; maybe she'll take it now."
"Okay," Duo said, going back to the rocking chair where the pacifier lay on the small side table. Picking it up he touched the nipple to her lips and she sucked it in, her tiny mouth working as she sucked. "That's my girl," Duo said affectionately and rocked her for a few more minutes.
"Put her in the bouncer for a while and come and eat while the food is still warm," Hilde said as she spooned some rice and curry on a plate for him.
Doing as Hilde suggested, he set Xiiro in the gently reclining seat and fastened the safety belt. Then sat on the floor beside her as Hilde carried their plates over and set Duo's on the coffee table where he could easily reach it.
"Want something to drink?" she asked as she went back to the kitchen to get a glass of water.
"Is there any Mountain Dew left?" He asked, his eyes following her as she moved around the room.
Opening the fridge, she peered inside then smiled. "Yep, there are a few cans left," she replied, pulling one out for him. "Here you go," she said, handing it to him as she sat on the sofa, setting her water glass near her plate. "What about that issue at work, did figure out what was wrong with the computer program?"
Duo scratched the back of his neck, "No, it's really strange. There's something wrong, I know there is but I can't actually find anything."
Hilde frowned and tore a piece of naan bread in half then nibbled at it thoughtfully. "Maybe you could try looking at it from a different angle," she suggested. "Look somewhere completely different, like you're looking at the computer program, right?" He nodded. "Try taking inventory instead, just looking and something else might give you an idea of what it is that's bothering you."
"That's a good idea," Duo replied before taking a bite of rice, he chewed and swallowed before continuing. "I personally haven't done inventory in several months, Jonesy has been doing a great job with it, but getting out from behind a computer and doing something more hands on might really help."
"It couldn't hurt," she replied before taking a sip from her water glass. "And I think Jonesy would probably welcome a break too."
"I was thinking of giving everyone the full week of Christmas off, with pay. What do you think?"
Hilde looked thoughtful for a moment as she mentally went over the pros and cons. "I think that would be a great holiday gift," she replied after several long moments of deliberation. They usually gave out bonus checks and let everyone off for just Christmas day but Christmas was on a Tuesday this year, having everyone take a day off in the middle of the week seemed kind of impractical, the whole week made more sense. It wasn't as if they were going to lose a ton of profit, all the regular orders for December were going out in just a few days, and any new orders that came in would postponed until after the first of the year to minimize the chances of the package being lost during the shipping.
They didn't need the whole crew there milling about when there was only one expected delivery and only one item scheduled to be picked up in person that week, Duo could easily pop in and take care of those himself. "Great," Duo said with a smile. "I'll sort it all out when I go into the office on Monday."
Hilde smiled in agreement and nodded towards his plate.
Now that that bit of worry had been relieved his appetite perked up and he tucked in like a man that hadn't eaten in days.
Earth
Wednesday, November 26th - AC 197
"We're here," Scott called out and he set the bright orange suitcase on the floor as Susan stripped off her coat then brushed the dusting of snow from her vibrant, unnaturally red hair.
"Sue," Rachel called happily, dumping the load of fresh-from-the-dryer towels she held on the sofa so she could give her older sister a hug. "How was your flight, I know how awful it can be to travel during the holidays, especially at the last minute."
"It was okay, really," Susan replied. "The six hour layover last night was the worst part but I managed a cat nap so it wasn't that bad."
"That's a relief," Rachel said with a smile. As Scott took the suitcase to the nursery they moved the towels to Heero's chair and sat together on the sofa, "I was a bit worried when you left that voicemail yesterday telling us your schedule had changed so you had booked a flight to join us for Thanksgiving, especially when by the time I got the message you had already left."
"Sorry to worry you Sweets, it was the last seat left, on the only flight I could find that would get me here before the holiday."
"Well, I am glad you had a safe trip," Rachel said as she got to her feet again.
"Where is everyone?" Sue asked as she followed her sister to the guest room.
"They're all in Michael's room watching a movie," Rachel replied and just as the words left her mouth a loud peal of laughter rang out through the open door a bit farther down the hallway, "it's supposed to be a horror movie."
Amused, Sue moved silently to stand in the doorway and watch the teens enjoy their movie in the darkened bedroom.
Heero sat, reclining against the headboard while Paul lay stretched out beside him, on his stomach. Only he lay with his head at the foot of the bed. Mary lay on her own bed in a similar position as Paul so they could share the large bowl of popcorn she held, and clearly still see the film playing on the small TV that hung on the wall above the dresser.
Pookie sat on the top of his shiny new habitat eating some popcorn Mary had snuck him before it had been salted and buttered.
The smell of popcorn was heavy in the air while on the screen a giant, furry, grey, pulsating blob sat; making faint crunching sounds at the foot of a bed that was occupied by two teenagers who were lost in the throes of passion.
Suddenly one of the teens on screen spotted the blob and let out a blood curdling scream that made Mary to jump, causing a handful of popcorn to come flying out of the bowl, then the three teens started laughing again.
"Hey kids, watcha watching?" Sue asked and Paul beamed up at her.
"Hi Aunt Sue, want to join us? We're watching 'The Fuzzy Radioactive Amoeba from the Den', it's really bad."{1}
She chuckled, "No thanks, kiddo but I wouldn't say no to a hug."
Grinning, Paul climbed off the bed, being careful not to jostle Heero too much and gave his aunt and hug.
"You must be Heero," Sue said offering Heero her had after Paul stepped away. Heero shook her hand. "And Mary," the woman carefully reached across the bed to shake Mary's hand too. "I've been looking forward to meeting you, but more formal introductions can wait until morning. I'll let you kids get back to your movie." She smiled at them then turned and left the room.
She had hardly reached the kitchen when laughter poured out of the room again.
Sue turned to her sister, "when you told me they were kids I expected children. Heero looks quite grown up to me."
"He's younger than Paul," Rachel said as she placed a steaming teacup on the breakfast bar.
"No, he isn't," Sue said seriously as she sat down. "He may look it, he may even act like it but that young man in there is no child."
"What are you saying?" Rachel asked as she sat beside her.
"I've worked with soldiers and veterans. Hundreds came though my clinic both during and after the war. Men and women, sometimes even younger than Heero came through in droves. They had all witnessed, lived though horrors we can't imagine and those horrors can age a soul. Children with the old, weathered eyes of someone many years older, I can see it now as clearly and I can see your glasses, like an aura surrounding them. Heero has the feeling around him," Sue sighed. "physically he may be 16 but he hasn't been a child for a very long time."
Rachel, looking as if she was about to cry took a sip of her tea, "is there something more, something different we should be doing to care for him?"
"Don't worry Sweets, you're doing just fine," Sue assured her. "But you could try giving him something to do, some way to help out or maybe enroll him in an online class. Giving him a feeling of usefulness could help a lot; just remember if he needs something more from you he'll let you know," Downing the last of her tea, Sue stood and gave her sister's shoulder a squeeze. "I'm off to bed; I'll see you in the morning."
"Good night."
Rachel was flipping through her recipe box when Scott wandered in some time later.
"The kids are all asleep," he said as he leaned against the counter.
"Is Paul in his room?"
"Yes, the movie ended a while ago so he went to bed when it was over," Scott replied then picked out a recipe card and studied it. "Need any help?"
"I think we're all set, the turkey is thawed and in the brine, the bread dough is rising, eggs are hard boiled, bread for the dressing is ready and the pies are out of the oven. The cold platter is also prepared and in the fridge with the drinks, I still need to peel and chop the vegetables but I'll get the kids to help with that in the morning."
"So all that's left to do is cook everything off?"
"Pretty much," Rachel replied. "But you can look through the box and see if I missed anything," she said and slid the box over before getting up to rinse her teacup in the sink.
Scott pulled out the stack of family recipes for dressing and gravy, the perfect turkey and such, sorting through them to see if anything had been forgotten. He read off the name of each one and set it aside when Rachel confirmed that it was ready to go.
"Well that's all of them and none were missed," Scott said as he put the cards back in their box.
"Guess we should call it a night too," Rachel said and moved to turn out the lights and lock up.
The next morning dawned icy cold as Rachel shuffled out of Heero and Mary's room having checked on the pregnant youth, pleased that the change in meds was working and that he had managed to sleep through the night for the first time since coming to live with them.
"Morning sweetie," Sue said from the breakfast bar, a pot of steaming tea sat beside her, indicating that she had been awake for some time already.
"How long have you been up?" Rachel asked as she picked up a cup and helped herself to some tea.
"About a half an hour," she replied with a yawn. "I took the turkey out to drain."
"Thanks," Rachel replied, then went to check that the turkey skin was dry and ready to receive the secret seasoning paste that their family had used for generations. She pulled the container of paste from fridge and set it beside the roasting pan that held the large turkey.
"Do you want to do the honors?" Rachel asked as she lifted the turkey out and placed it on a white kitchen towel so it wouldn't slide about.
"And have all the fun to myself, I wouldn't dream of it," Sue replied dryly.
Rachel just grinned at her sister and washed her hands before putting on a pair of latex and powder free disposable gloves. "Time to examine the patient," she said as she snapped the glove around her wrist.
"Bend over and cough," Sue managed to say with difficulty, hardly able to speak around her bubbling laughter.
Rachel laughed loudly and turned back to the bird, carefully working her fingers between the skin and the breast meat. "Nurse, scalpel," she said seriously holding out a hand; Sue snorted her tea before passing her the container of Grandma's secret Turkey paste.
Rachel scooped out globs of the pale paste with her fingers and spread it evenly under the skin, seasoning the meat. Once the container was empty and the paste covered the entire turkey, she carefully set it back into the roasting pan, breast side down, and then stripped off her gloves because they were covered in paste. Then she took the towel to the laundry room and popped it in the washer to soak in bleach water before going back to the kitchen to wash her hands.
"What's next to be done?" Sue asked as she watched her younger sister slide the now foil covered roasting pan into the oven.
"Not much until the turkey comes out. I can get the kids to help with some of the rest of the prep work in about two hours," Rachel replied as she closed the oven door. "I can't cook anything else off until the turkey is almost done."
Sue nodded in understanding, though not big on cooking for herself, she and Rachel had always helped their mother out in the kitchen when they were children. "When's mom getting here?"
"Probably within the hour," Rachel replied as she set the timer for the oven. "She'll need some help bringing in the rest of the food."
"Yams?" Sue asked, her eyes lighting up in delight.
"Yes," Rachel confirmed. "Candied yams, green bean casserole, and carrot pudding, and knowing mom she'll probably bring another dessert or four."
Sue laughed; their mother used any occasion to bake but usually gave it all away. She once said that she was fond of the craft of baking but didn't like sweets all that much.
Rachel pulled out a container of disinfecting cloths and went to start wiping down the counters when Sue snatched the container out of her hand. "Go have another cup of tea dear, I'll tidy up." Rachel gave her a grateful smile and sat down at the breakfast counter and poured a fresh cup of tea.
"Morning mom, Aunt Sue," Paul greeted just as his aunt finished with the counters.
"Morning sweetheart," Rachel replied gesturing to the empty seat beside her. Paul wasn't much of a tea drinker, but accepted the cup his mother offered him.
They we just thinking about making something light to eat when there was a soft knock on the door.
"That's your grandma, go let her in dear," Rachel shooed and Paul ran to the front door to let her in.
"I didn't wake you, did I?" Emma asked as she stepped inside.
"Nope," Paul assured her. "I've been up for a while."
"Oh good, I was trying to knock quietly so I wouldn't wake anyone up," she said as she followed her grandson to the kitchen, leaving her coat on the back of the sofa along the away. She did have a key but didn't want to let herself in without being absolutely sure there wasn't anyone up, especially with Heero and Mary now living there. She didn't want to suddenly startle someone who wasn't expecting her.
"Good morning Mom," Sue and Rachel chimed in unison when the older woman came into view. They had both moved to the entry and hugged her when she stopped near the breakfast bar.
When the broke away Emma said, "There are several pans of food in the back seat of my car."
"I'll get them," Paul announced and moved to throw a jacket over his pajamas. After stuffing his feet into some wellington boots he trudged out to the car. It took him two trips to bring in all the food he grandma had made.
"I know you like cooking, but isn't this a bit much mom?" Rachel asked, eyeing the dish covered breakfast bar. "Even with two more people this year it's going to be Christmas before we eat all this."
"I didn't know what Heero and Mary's tastes were so I brought some different things. Most anything you don't eat right away you can throw in the deep freezer and use later."
Rachel nodded, that was sweet of her mother to try and ensure that everyone had something they enjoyed.
"Oh," Emma added. "I also brought a French toast Casserole for breakfast. It's in the square white Corelle dish."
Paul and Sue's faces lit up in delight. Emma usually only made that dish for birthday breakfast, Sue hadn't had it in years since she lived so far away and Paul's birthday was in February so it too had been a while.
Scott the sleep zombie made his appearance then and shuffled through with a mumbled statement that could have been 'Good morning' or "Gimme coffee" it was anyone's guess, as he went straight to the coffee pot only pausing long enough to kiss Emma's cheek.
"I take it Michael won't be joining us this year," Emma said as she arranged her dishes, sorting out the ones that needed to go into the fridge and what needed to be warmed up again.
"He called and said something about needing to study," Rachel replied standing by the open fridge trying to find some space for the dishes that needed to fit inside.
"Hey, the parade is starting{2}," Paul called from the sofa and Rachel hurried from the kitchen.
"Mary has said about a dozen times over the past few days that she was looking forward to seeing it," Rachel explained. "I promised to wake her so she wouldn't miss it."
She disappeared down the hall and a few moments later Mary flew into the living room. She hadn't bothered to dress, only throwing a robe over pajamas, her stocking covered feet sliding to a stop right next to Heero's chair. She absentmindedly tucked a lock of her disheveled hair behind an ear as she climbed into the chair.
"Good morning dear," Emma said as she approached the girl and offered her a plate of warm French toast casserole.
"Morning missus Stevenson," the girl replied as she accepted the plate with one hand and adjusted the collar of her robe with the other, suddenly a little self conscious and wishing she had taken a few minutes to dress, but everyone else was still dressed in their night clothes, except for Emma so she pushed the shyness aside with a smile and took a bite of her breakfast.
"Is Heero awake yet?" Scott asked of Rachel when she returned to the tiny, crowded kitchen.
"Not really, if left alone he'll probably nod off again," she replied then shooed her family out of the kitchen so she had space to move around. Plates and drinks in hand, everyone else found seats in the living room and watched the parade while Rachel went about organizing the final preparations for the meal.
By the time Heero appeared the 'show' part of the parade was over and the warm house was filled with delicious smells. Though he hadn't eaten since the popcorn they had shared during the movie the night before he decided not to have a plate of the French toast casserole so he would have room for the main event that was expected to be ready in just about an hour.
He settled into the chair beside Mary to enjoy the rest of the parade, but couldn't focus on the show because the girl had a bowl of peeled potatoes in her lap and was trying to cut them into cubes while watching the vid screen, but because she wasn't very skilled in the kitchen she kept cutting them into uneven sizes, then would go back and cut a larger piece smaller to match the others. By the time she had finished cutting up just three potatoes nearly 15 minutes had passed and most of the pieces were too tiny to use as they would turn to mush in the boiling water before the larger pieces were cooked through.
"Here, let me try," Heero offered, taking the bowl from the frustrated girl.
She gladly passed the task to him and focused on the parade again. It wasn't as if she hadn't wanted to help, quite the opposite actually, it was that she could cut up potatoes any day but the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade only came on once a year and she had never seen it before and to be honest, the little girl that still lived inside her didn't want to miss seeing Santa Claus at the end.
Easily able to do two tasks at once, Heero quickly and efficiently cut the potatoes into uniform pieces, completing the work before Paul finished with his bowl of carrots, and Rachel took it away, leaving him a wet cloth to clean his hands with.
Glad to see that Heero had separated Mary's tiny pieces from the other larger ones, Rachel was able to cook all the potatoes by adding the tiny bits to the pot after the larger ones had cooked for a while. After the potatoes and carrots were cooked she pulled the turkey from the oven, putting three pans in its place, then took a break, sitting on the arm of Scott's chair so she could see the end of the parade.
With a discrete glance around the room she was surprised and a little saddened to see tears pooling in but not falling from Mary's eyes. It was clear Heero was aware as well by the way he held her hand in his but he kept his eyes on the screen and didn't bring attention to the fact that she was nearly crying at seeing Santa on the TV.
As the credits began to appear and the voice over announced that the dog show would be starting right after the parade, everyone except Heero got up and left the room. Each dropping their breakfast plates off in the kitchen before heading off to get dressed while Emma offered to keep an eye on the food.
She was just taking the pans out of the oven when Rachel came back, they had already been cooked and only needed to be warmed through again. Setting them aside the oven was once again filled, this time with the pies that, like the other foods had already been cooked and needed to be warmed up, only this time the oven was shut off the residual heat keeping them warm until they were needed.
Mary, not interested in the dog show joined Rachel and Emma in the kitchen and mashed the potatoes after receiving brief instructions while the other two did last minute things like finishing the gravy and moving the carrots to a serving dish.
Soon all the food was spread out on the breakfast bar to be served buffet style and everyone was lining up to get a plate. Mary filled a plate for Heero with just a tiny bite from each dish before going back to make one for herself then settled in the chair beside him. The TV was shut off for a moment as Scott said a blessing, something he had never done at a meal before then Paul selected two files on the Vid and set them to play back to back before settling on the floor between Heero's chair and the coffee table, freeing up the sofa for his aunt and grandmother to share. Though he could have sat in his father's usual place, the armchair as his parents were sitting together in the loveseat, he had the sudden desire to sit close to the other youth, though he played it off as wanting to use the table instead.
Both films were pre-colony, the first was an old short running about 15 minutes long and had been shown during Thanksgiving dinner as a Stevenson family tradition since Emma was a child, she had shared it with her children and Rachel, in turn shared it with her family and now they were sharing it with Heero and Mary.
Though not particularly religious Heero figured out is was a 'birth of Christ' manger story fairly quickly and enjoyed the non-traditional way the story was portrayed.
Soon it was over and the second film started. This movie had been a Bennett family tradition and so was combined with the other to be watched every year. By the time everyone in the movie was rushing through the airport the people in the Bennett living room had finished their dinners and were starting on dessert.
As the film came to an end the adults had started cleaning up and Mary had joined Paul on the floor so Heero, who had fallen asleep about a half an hour before, would be more comfortable.
"Those guys were so stupid," Mary said as she rose to her feet and Paul laughed quietly. "Too bad Heero missed the end."
"He can always watch it later," Paul replied as he started gathering up the TV trays to take back to the garage.
"Do you have any special movie traditions for Christmas?" She asked as she followed the other teen to the garage while carrying one of the trays.
"Not really, though we usually try to cram as many Christmas movies as we can between now and then."
She watched as he hung each tray on the rack before asking, "What do you do for Christmas? I mean Heero and I would love to take part, contribute in some way but we don't have anything to give. We have nothing to offer you and your family to show how grateful we are for what you're doing for us."
"What you just said was enough," Paul said sincerely. "Trust me; no one wants you to feel like you're obligated to pay us back. We're all happy to help and we don't want or need anything in return."
Her smile was a litter watery and he grinned at her.
"Come on, let's watch another movie and have another piece of pie."
Later that night while Heero lay in his bed re-watching the film he had fallen asleep to his thoughts went round and round as he tried to figure out a way to not over use the Bennett's hospitality was also trying to figure out how to pay them back.
He had never had such a familial experience before, sitting around in pajamas together, preparing a meal together, saying grace and then partaking in a decade's old tradition. It had both warmed him and frightened him, bringing thoughts of his own future and his children screeching to the forefront.
At first he had feigned sleep just so he didn't have to pretend to be watching the movie anymore and was relieved when he actually did drop off but later after he had gone back to their room, Mary had come in to feed Pookie and had told him what she and Paul had spoken about in the garage.
She expressed a great desire to do something for them in return, but like Heero didn't want to inadvertently insult them in some way.
He lied when Rachel later asked what he thought of the movie when she has come to give him his bedtime medication. Despite the humorous nature of the film his thoughts wouldn't settle and let him enjoy it, and he later fell asleep with a frown.
TBC.
A/N:
{1} 'The Fuzzy Radioactive Amoeba From The Den' is actually 'Quatre The Fuzzy Radioactive Amoeba From The Den' and was borrowed from a fun, yet sadly incomplete Gundam Wing story called, "Things That Go Bump in the Night" by Clever Young Thief and the last time I checked it was still on GW Addiction. This is the second time I have used this as a movie title in a GW fanfic.
For Susan (crazy Aunt Sue) I imagine her as an herb growing, multiple cat owning, pot smoking hippy that looks a lot like Madame Trelawney (Harry Potter), with bright auburn hair but no glasses.
{2} I know that this would take place hundreds of years in the future but I would hope that people would still have the chance to see this parade and be able to have it be a part of their family traditions.
For those not familiar with the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade it was started in 1924 and is held in Manhattan, New York. It begins at 77th Street at Central Park West and ends at 34th Street and Seventh Avenue. It is about three hours long starting at 9 am and ending at noon, with time delay taping it airs at the same time nationwide. It features live performances from Broadway shows, large character balloons, floats (many with musical guests) and marching bands. Santa Claus is always the last to show, ringing in the start of the Christmas season. It was first televised locally in 1939; NBC has been airing it nationally since 1952. It has been followed by the National Dog Show since 1999 and then the 1947 film (and occasionally its 1994 remake) 'The Miracle on 34th Street' is usually shown.
The first of the two films is 'Star in the Night', a 1945 short film directed by Don Siegel and won an Academy Award in 1946 for Best Short Subject. The film is a modern-day retelling of the Nativity story, set on Christmas Eve at a desert motel in the Southwestern United States. (traditionally this is the first Christmas film my family watches every year) if interested I think it can be found on youtube.
And if you hadn't guessed the second movie was 'Home Alone' a 1990 film about a kid that accidentally gets left home while his family goes on vacation during Christmas.
The turkey paste is just a compound butter made with spices and other seasonings.
Also, for those who asked, Duo is not bisexual, he is pansexual. Pansexuality is sexual attraction, romantic love, or emotional attraction toward people of any sex or gender identity. In other words he loves the person, not the plumbing.