AN: continuation of last chapter
Title/theme: PEACE
Genre: fluff
Approx time line: Phase 26-28 of GS
Summary: "Come on," he grinned, "You and I both need to go outside. We've been stuck indoors for so long that I wonder if we've become creatures of the night"
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"This is a bad idea," the Archangel captain mumbled as she walked towards the exit of the ship. "What if someone needs me?"
The man walking beside her sighed. "Relax Captain, like they said, the ship's safe here. It can't even be detected by satellite, so they can't find us."
"But, what if the crew—"
"Let the Lieutenant deal with it," he cut her off. "I'm sure whatever problem they have, they can wait until you get back."
"But—"
"Whatever work you have to finish, it can wait. For now, just relax and stop worrying," he stated with finality. Then at her unsure look, his tone softened. "They'll be fine for a few hours. Have a little faith in the crew."
She sighed and nodded. She'd already agreed to go take a walk with him, and she doubt he'd let her go back on her word. Guess they'd just have to do without their captain for a few hours.
"Come on," he grinned, "You and I both need to go outside. We've been stuck indoors for so long that I wonder if we've become creatures of the night. I bet you probably don't even remember what the sun looks like."
She giggled, "Why would you look at the sun directly?"
But he was right. They've been either inside the ship, the hanger, or the Morgenraete facilities since they've arrived at Orb. And before that, they've been inside the ship since leaving the desert.
As they reached the exit, Mwu suddenly stopped her.
"Wait, you can't go out dressed like that," he said.
Murrue looked down at herself. He was right. She couldn't exactly walk around Orb in her EA military uniform. It was supposed to be a secret that Orb was helping their ship. She looked up and noticed that he was wearing a plain t-shirt and jeans (where did he get that anyway?). She sighed inwardly. So he planned this all along.
"Well, what am I going to wear then?"
He looked thoughtful, but shrugged. "I dunno, but not that."
Before she could react, he leaned forward and started to unbutton her uniform collar for her, then moved as if to help her unzip her jacket. Her cheeks flushed as she stopped his hand with hers.
"I-I can do it myself Commander," she managed to stutter. She was wearing a t-shirt underneath, but still…
She heard him sigh in defeat. "Of course Captain," then in a tone that barely hid his amusement, "But could you let go of my hand first?" he chuckled.
She looked at him blankly as his words sank in, as if not knowing what he was talking about. Then she realised that she was still holding on to his hand. She gasped and quickly released her grip, face flaming. She dared not to look at him as her heart pounded in embarrassment.
"W-Wait here, I-I'll go change into, into a Morgenraete uniform or something," she stuttered before quickly running off, faintly hearing his muffled laughter.
She came back a moment later in the red coat and green pants of Morgenraete. She thought she saw slight disappointment cross his features, but shook it away, telling herself it was just her imagination.
They walked away from the ship and out onto the streets. It was mid-afternoon, and the sun was shining gloriously in a blue sky that matched his eyes.
"Ah," he took in a deep breath, "Sky, trees, fresh air! How I've missed you!" He tilted his head towards the sky, then pretended to cover his eyes in pain. "The sun, it burns!"
She laughed. Sometimes she could hardly believe that he was actually older than her.
"This way," he gestured as he led her to a waiting car. She raised an eyebrow. So he really did plan this.
"I thought you said you wanted to take a walk."
He grinned. "Yes, but we have to get away from the military facilities first."
As they drove along, Murrue tilted her head back to enjoy the breeze. She could feel that her head was clearing already with the fresh air and sunlight. She wondered faintly where he was taking her as she looked at the peaceful neighbourhoods they've passed. Looking at this, you really had no idea that a war was going on just outside the border.
They parked the car on a peaceful side street and decided to walk to the dock. The street they took was lined with shops and stalls, and people roamed casually in and out without a care in the world. They passed a park, where children laughed as they played, and couples sat together enjoying each other's company. On the street, people were bustling about in their cars, on foot, or bicycles. Billboards and screens displayed ads and music videos instead of image of battles and propaganda. And for the two soldiers who had been in the military for so long that they'd forgotten what normal life was like, they envied these people.
"It's so peaceful here," Murrue noted as she glanced at the displays in the store windows.
"Yeah," he agreed. "Hard to believe there even is a war out there."
"Heliopolis was like this too," she said wistfully, "before…" she trailed off.
Her eyes widened a bit as she felt him grab her hand and squeezed it gently in assurance. She blushed slightly and smiled in thanks, noticing how warm his hand felt.
"Um, Commander?" she glanced at him shyly. He gave her his usual grin.
"Yes?"
"C-Could you let go of my hand now?"
"Oh, sorry," he chuckled and did as he was asked, but with a bit of reluctance.
They walked on in silence, content to watch the citizens of Orb go about in their everyday life. And since they were out of their uniforms, for the moment, they could pretend that they too, lived in peace. For the moment, they could get away from fighting wars, from developing strategies of their next battle, repairing military equipment, doing paperwork, and pretend that they had no other care in the world except to take a walk through the streets.
"Makes me wonder sometimes why I chose to give this up in the first place," she mused aloud.
"I know," he said softly. "But I feel a bit better thinking that what we're doing right now could one day bring this"—he gestured at the surroundings—"to the rest of the world."
They reached the dock and stood there gazing at the azure waters, breathing in the salty air. In the distance, a gull cried out as it dove into the waves.
"Phew, it's getting hot," she commented as she unbuttoned and shrugged off the jacket, revealing her blue t-shirt underneath. Even though the ocean wind was cool, they no longer had any shade here, and the mid-afternoon sun made her quite hot inside the thick coat.
"That's better," she inhaled as she tilted her head back to enjoy the cooling wind.
Mwu stood beside her, and found his attention being drawn to her rather than to the scenery, and watched her with a gentle smile. He had wondered how she would look without her uniform on. He had wanted to take her out so that she could enjoy herself without the obligation of being captain, but also because he wanted to see her in a different setting, a casual setting, and he wanted to see her be herself and smile genuinely. He was slightly disappointed when she shed her EA uniform only to put on another one, but now that she'd taken her jacket off…
She looked so peaceful. It was hard to imagine that this woman was indeed the captain of the now famous "legged ship" that evaded ZAFT for so long. She looked like an ordinary woman. But he knew that she was far from that. If he looked closely, even without her uniform, he could still feel her silent strength, poise, and commanding air of a warship captain. Her dark hair danced as the ocean breeze threaded its fingers through it. Her marigold eyes shone happily as they gazed into the horizon. Her pink lips were curved up slightly in a gentle and content smile. She looked relaxed but still dignified, and was absolutely breathtaking.
"Murrue…" he breathed in awe as he watched her.
"Hmm?" she turned towards him absent-mindedly. "Did you say something Commander?"
Realising his mistake, he quickly replied, "Uh, nothing Captain, just that it's so peaceful here."
She turned back to the scenery, gentle smile still there.
"And it's so beautiful too."
"Yes," he agreed softly, but he wasn't looking at the scenery.
"Wouldn't it be nice if we could live in someplace like this one day?"
"Yeah," he answered, nodding, "That would be great."
"Until then, let's work hard together to bring that about," she smiled, turning to him with determination in her eyes.
"Yes," he returned her smiled, "Let's work together," he echoed.
Without thinking, he reached for her hand. But this time, neither asked the other to let go.
AN: aww look, two fluffy chaps in a row from me, hope it makes up for "What the Heart Desires"?
anyway, idea actually came from Destiny, when Neo asked Murrue if she wanted to go outside for some fresh air since she's been stuck on the ship for so long. I wondered if that ever happened in SEED. I wanted them to relax in Orb, but debated whether to set it the first or second time they're in Orb. I set it to the first time because it's when they're beginning to really like each other. and the uniform, well, I just like the idea of Mwu loosening Murrue's collar for her -