Timeline: Assume the coming chapters all happen over the span of a week. It's what I'm doing. XD And for the universes, just assume the timeline unless otherwise stated is TWT.
Week One
1x2
Shrugging off his jacket, Duo threw the garment on the back of their couch. He turned around and smiled wildly at Heero.
"How was your day, Hee-chan?" Duo asked.
Heero had been mysteriously silent the past three days and Duo's curiosity was begging to know what plagued the other man. Duo blamed it on his inner cat. That feline always got him into the strangest trouble…
"Actually, I want to talk to you." Heero said abruptly. "Right now, if permissible."
Duo raised his eyebrow and watched Heero closer. His eyes were nervous, but his body language confident. That was peculiar in itself – to have two different signals. Duo couldn't recall one moment in his life where Heero had been nervous. The closest he could recall was the anxious expression he wore when Relena proclaimed him her boyfriend for two weeks.
(Duo also had never seen Heero so relieved until the day Relena gently broke it off with the classic, "it's me, not you" speech. Not even after he kissed Duo for the first time and saw Duo's wide grin.)
"Alright," Duo agreed cautiously. What did that crazy woman from the support group do to his Heero?
NaruSasu
"Sasukeee!" Naruto shouted gleefully. "I have a surpriseee!"
"What is it?" Sasuke asked called calmly from the bedroom.
To say one Naruto Uzumaki was surprised when he didn't get Chidori or senbon or anything lethal sent at his head would be an understatement.
Stupefied, Naruto could only stare at Sasuke. This was new. There was an unwritten law somewhere that stated if Naruto was annoying, Sasuke had the right to punish him in some way. Sasuke normally would never allow screeching through the house, or make calm inquires to afore mentioned screeching. Sasuke was more likely to bitch and glare until Naruto gave in and told him. In which Sasuke would bitch and glare some more.
Naruto wasn't sure how to treat new. "You feel okay?"
DH
"We need to—" Harry began before Draco quickly overruled him.
"Would you like to go out tonight?"
Harry blinked at his boyfriend. He wasn't exactly sure what to do here. Did he continue to try and have a talk with Draco that he had been putting off and probably put him in a bad mood, or did he agree to Draco's date? Perplexed, Harry dumbly nodded.
"Good." Draco said in his self satisfied tone. "Be ready by four tomorrow."
What on in Merlin's name could Draco be planning at four in the afternoon? Curious, Harry gave his blonde a smile and began to grin when he was rewarded by a shy smile.
He loved Draco's smiles, as rare as they were.
Royed
"Ed," Roy began firmly. "We need to talk about books."
The older man watched his lover nod slowly; his golden eyes narrow in thought. "I suppose we do."
Roy was instantly reminded of why nerds were hot. The way Ed's eyes focused, the way his face moved into a slightly completive expression turned Roy on. But he had to be strong. For the sake of their future.
"Great." Roy nodded. "What kind of books are we going to discuss? Family planning? Ancient alchemy? Great war strategies through the ages? Sex manuals for the advanced?"
Ed began to choke. Roy smirked at having gotten the upper hand. The teenager truly was a marvel to see with his face turning red like that. Absent mindedly, Roy wondered if there was any more film in his camera. This discussion was going to be a lot more interesting than he formerly believed and he wanted to document it.
And no, the hot and bothered feeling did not leave. Roy speculated his odds of getting sex that day with a judging eye on Ed's red face.
Looked like fifty-fifty.
Puzzleshipping
"What's on your mind, meryi?" Atemu asked his younger lover with some concern.
Yugi started and smiled sheepishly at the concerned ex-pharaoh. He hadn't meant to stare at Atemu without blinking for so long… Perhaps now would be time for that discussion with Atemu? It wasn't like he could say he wasn't thinking of anything. Atemu had already noticed something was wrong.
"Yugi?" Atemu prompted again.
His courage failed him. "Nothing!"
Great, a chicken has more courage than you do, he berated himself with a slight pout on his lips. He was so distracted with chastising himself, he didn't even notice Atemu's red eyes darken.
Spirk
"Spock—"
"Jim—"
Spock observed his beloved. Jim's cheeks were slightly flushed from their previous activities and he couldn't have looked more desirable than he had the first time Spock had noticed the overly cocky human.
"Yes, Jim?" Spock pushed gently.
"Wanna stay with my mom for the holidays?"
Spock blinked. That had not been what he had been expecting. Tilting his head to one side, Spock answered. "That is acceptable."
"Oh, good. Because she invited us and I've been promising for years, but you know, being on a five year mission detracts from Christmas visits. So, now we have plans. For Christmas."
"Indeed." Spock acknowledged.
Jim was acting odd today. The urge to delve into his lover's mind nearly consumed him. He needed to find out what ailed his t'hy'la. Christmas was over nine months away. If that wasn't a sign of a preoccupied mind, all of Spock's previous observations about human behavior were incorrect.
1x2
"Did you hear that Heero Yuy and Duo Maxwell resigned?" Coworker #1 asked excitedly.
"Yeah! I heard it was because Maxwell got impregnated by some aliens on their latest mission and now Yuy is willing to be the thing's other father!" Coworker #2 gossiped back.
"Well, you heard wrong." Coworker #3 frowned heavily. "It was because Yuy was impregnated by a tentacle monster."
"No, wasn't." Coworker #2 snapped back.
"Yes, it was!" Coworker #3 snarled. "I even heard Lady Une accept their resignations!"
"Maybe you're both right?" Coworker #1 intervened.
She had only wanted to gossip for a little bit, not cause an all out fight amongst her peers…
"Barton?" Wufei began with a frown. "Why are those women pulling each other's hair out on the floor like that?"
"I don't think any man can fully explain the female mind." Trowa shrugged.
"IT"S MAXWELL!" Coworker #2 screamed, throwing a fist.
"IT"S YUY!" Coworker #3 shouted, tearing at the other woman's blouse.
"This is just another reason why women belong at home and not in the work place." Wufei huffed.
"Hmmm," Trowa said. "Did you hear about Heero and Duo?"
"Of course," Wufei sniffed while they walked past the two squabbling females on the floor and one wide eyed one. "I helped them convince Lady Une to relieve them of their responsibilities as quickly as possible."
"Really?"
"Yes, I wanted Maxwell out of here as quickly as possible." Wufei smirked. "I heard their going to be opening a business of some sort. Heero didn't really divulge the details."
"I'm happy for them then." Trowa said simply.
"It's a bit suspicious, isn't it?" Wufei continued. "Heero usually has a detailed plan about these things. From what I gleaned from Maxwell's chatter, they're 'winging' it."
"Maybe it was that therapy group they went to?" Trowa suggested. "Quatre wants to check it out. We're going to be going to the ones held by a Dr. Chandler and a Dr. Chase, however."
"Don't come back weird like those two did," Wufei ordered.
NaruSasu
"Welcome to the Mismoru Resort! The only place in the country where your identity doesn't matter for a low fee of XXX!" a rather cheery woman greeted. "How may I help you?"
Sakura breathed in deep and counted to ten and then released the breath.
"I would like to book a room for a week with the utmost discretion." Sakura ordered.
"Yes, ma'am!" the woman said. "What kind of room? And for how many?"
"A suite, if you can manage it." Sakura said through her teeth. "And for two only."
"And you said with the utmost discretion?" the woman asked again.
"Yes, no one can know about these two staying there."
"Then I have a few questions for you, are our guests on the run?"
"No," Sakura denied. Not anymore anyways, she mentally corrected.
"Are they mentally unbalanced?"
"No," Sakura denied again. Naruto, you so owe me for this.
"Perfect!" the woman cheered. Sakura winced. "When should we expect our guests?"
"Two days."
"Under what name should I put the reservations under?"
"Uzumaki."
Sakura growled when the line went dead. That was the second place to hang up on her as soon as she mentioned the name Uzumaki. Damn it. This was going to take forever!
Sakura dialed a new number and immediately growled to the other person on the other line, "Sasuke Uchiha needs a fucking suite. If he doesn't have one ready in two days for a week, he's going to kill someone, got it?" After hearing the meek affirmative, Sakura began to smile again. "Good. Pleasure doing business with you.
Looks like your name striking fear in hearts is a good thing Sasuke, Sakura thought with some good humor returning. Too bad Naruto's strikes more fear even though he's a good guy.
DH
"We're meeting Ginny for dinner next week," Hermione informed her best friend.
Harry blinked at his best friend, surprised to see her. When did she get there? And for that matter, how the hell did she get into his house? He could have sworn he took her key away when she began abusing her privileges.
"We are?" Harry echoed.
"Yes," Hermione confirmed. "Just the Weasleys and us."
"When, again?" Harry asked.
"On Tuesday." Hermione said with exasperation.
"Sorry," Harry shrugged. "I can't."
"What?" Hermione asked.
You don't have to sound so shocked, Harry thought wryly.
"Draco and I have a date." Harry clarified.
"Can't you change it?" Hermione frowned. "You know how important this is."
"Not really," Harry shook his head. "Besides, I'm sure Ginny can do with a break. I know I'm tired of her mum always dropping hints about how we should get back together."
"Is Malfoy pressuring you to say no?" Hermione demanded. "He doesn't control your life, you know."
"No, Draco isn't pressuring me." Harry responded drolly. "I'm doing this because I want to."
"Harry," Hermione started.
"Conversation over, Hermione." Harry said firmly. "I'm going on a date with Draco. I'll have dinner with you guys later. I promise."
"But Harry—"
"I'll talk to you later, Hermione." Harry deflected.
When the young woman finally left, Harry smiled wryly to himself. "God, she's worse than Draco."
Royed
Riza Hawkeye tightened her grip on her tea mug. The ceramic was still warm, making her palms sweaty. She was staring into the mug without really seeing anything. Not that the murky brown water inside the mug was something she was really interested in staring down. Her grandmother once told her, all the answers to life would never be found in the bottom of a cup so just drink the god damn tea already you foolish girl.
With some fear, her relatives liked to say Riza inherited the woman's personality.
Which made the decision in front of her all the more perplexing. She was the Elizabeth Hawkeye's granddaughter. She should be able to do this!
"This would completely change my life," she mused out loud. "It would be for a good cause. My best friend would be happy, as would Edward. How can I say no when it would make everyone in my life happy?"
She stroked the side of her mug and recalled all the people in her life. She recalled the antics of her coworkers and friends. The sparkles and deaths. The photos and orders. The love and grief. She had worked with them all for years. If Riza could give them a little bit of light in their lives, shouldn't she try? Could Riza Hawkeye do something as selfless like that?
"The men would be overjoyed," she told the air. "They would love it, as would the brass. They would see Roy as responsible and I'm willing to bet they wouldn't consider Edward dangerous. It'd be good for everyone and I would achieve my dreams of helping Roy achieve his…"
She imagined Al's face if he found out and smiled. The love and adoration he would aim at her and his brother would far out way any discomfort she would have. And if she did this for them, she wouldn't be cast out by them. She would be so deeply ingrained in their family, she would never see a way out. So what was she waiting for? She would belong to a family, a feeling she had been missing since Grandmama died.
"I'll do it if you ask me, Edward." Riza swore to herself. "But only if you do a favor for me as well!"
Puzzleshipping
"Yugi," Mai asked with some amusement. "What are you doing?"
She looked over at the young man across the table that had shrunk in his seat. Mai watched the usually gentle teen dart his amethyst eyes rapidly to the side and back and smile sheepishly.
"Sorry, I thought I saw Atemu."
"And why are you hiding from Atemu?" She asked with some amusement.
Usually her involvement with the teenager was limited to tournaments and lunch dates with Joey and the rest of his friends. Yugi's invitation to lunch had been a large surprise to her that drew at her curiosity, demanding her attention and that she accept the invitation, which was why she was sitting outside a café with a raspberry ice tea in front of her while she watched Yugi pursue the menu and hide.
"Ah, I don't want him to know I'm talking to you." Yugi managed to say. She raised an eyebrow. Interesting.
"Why's that?"
"I want your opinion on something and Joey trusts you." Yugi said.
Her usually cold heart felt touched that the teen would trust her opinion about something but that didn't explain much. "Why do you want my opinion?"
"You're a woman," Yugi flushed with embarrassment. She smirked slightly.
"So, why not ask one of your other little friends? Like that Anzu girl?" Mai asked.
"She's not, um, well," Yugi stuttered. "She's not like you. She's too, um, how do I put this? She's too close and can't give me an objective opinion."
Mai had never felt so flattered before in her life. "You want me to give you an honest opinion? About what?"
"Atemu," he flushed.
Not only was her curiosity being tickled, but Yugi trusted her to be honest with him in regards to his relationship. How did she get so lucky? The only thing that could make this day better would be if she had someone to call her own as well.
"I want to ask you about…"
Spirk
"You want me to what?" Bones asked blankly
"You heard me," Kirk grinned.
"I think I heard you," Bones agreed. "But for the sake of my sanity I better have heard wrong."
"Why?" Kirk frowned. "What's wrong with it?"
"Besides the fact we're on a god damn starship and he's a Vulcan? Not a thing." Bones said. "But we are on a starship and he is a Vulcan. It's not going to work."
"It's going to work." Kirk dismissed. "Besides, doesn't your daughter need to get them off her hands anyways?"
"Not the point, Jim." Bones scowled. "The point is it's not going to work."
"Why don't you allow me to worry about it working, and you just get it for me, deal?" Kirk retorted playfully.
Kirk grinned playfully one last time and left his best friend's office with a cheery grin. Bones growled and slammed his desk with hand, wishing he had a strong drink hidden somewhere. Jim just never made anything easy.
"I swear that damn support group just put funny ideas in his head." Bones grumbled. "Didn't make them normal at all."
Riza's grandmother is so named because of the character Buffy Summers. I figured she's a kick ass blonde female so... I finally posted this after arguing with myself about posting it as a seperate story, so this chapter is more like a prologue (which is why no real details are given as to what each group is doing) and then we'll get into the actual story. :) Future chapters will be longer, this is just the set up. :)