1978, Black Forrest Karlsland...
Lilith Hartmann sat in the drivers seat of the car, her breath slow and steady as she placed her hands on the wheel. She looked up, her eyes encased behind a pair of glasses at her Aunt, Erica, the older Blonde smiled and nodded as she turned the key and the engine roared to life.
"OK, now you slowly back up and- she was interupted as the girl, switched it into reverse, slammed her booted foot unto the gas, and sped out the driveway into the dirt road leading away from the summer house.
"OK" she sighed "You might want to check before you do that you know" she said as the yonger witch slammed her head into the wheel and sobbed a bit.
"I'll never learn at this rate" she cried.
"It's OK, it's not like flying a striker where a little mistakes will kill you, you just need to be calm and relax" she hushed.
"No, if i can't learn this how will i ever be a good witch"?
"You know Barkhorn couldn't drive for her life"
"Yes, but Auntie Gertrude made up for it, she was a war hero..." she added to her sobbing. Erica smiled as she placed a hand on the younger blondes shoulders 'you know, i knew someone else who's couldn't drive for there life who still had a good life..."
"Who's that" she sniffed"
"Just a war hero, Fighter Pilot, Fallshirmjager, former Astronaut and one time boxer married to my sweet sister" she said with a smirk.
"No" Lilith almost gasped "You don't mean..."
"Yep, your old man himself, you see, it's a long story..."
...
Saint Trodes Base, 1944...
Erica Hartmann's room at Saint Trodes may have been bigger, she may not have had to share it, but it held one thing i common with her old room.
It was a mess.
Normal this didn't cause her any problems but she found herself awoken by a sound she had never heard before, a loud engine noise, it was loud for a moment, then ceased before starting back up again.
After two minutes of this, she could no longer take it. had Trude devised this devious sound to wake her? No, not even Barkhorn could be so evil. She couldn't take it any longer and flung herself to her rooms window, flinging the blinds open with rage she saw a strange sight.
Von luck...Peter Von Luck, the plot who dated her sister, not a bad guy by any standards, was sitting in the front seat of a Kublewagen trying...and failing, to turn right in to the bases perimiter, but every few seconds he would yell and slam on the breaks, the engine was making a deathly cursing sound as he did so.
She winced as he yelled throwing it in reverse and ruining the three minutes of so call "progress" he had made. She opened the window and shatering what little silence remained yelled 'What are you doing"? at him.
She watched him jump from the jeep in supprise, slowly he stuck his head up "Kilroy" style over the hood with his nose sticking out.
"Oh, hello, is your sister home"? he asked pulling himself up from the dirt. He dusted the mud from his black jacket (A male version of her own) as he did so.
"No" She sighed making his heart cry in sorrow "She's out doing some science stuff, you know, Crow Guns and Gravity Bars, that sort of thing"
"Oh...OK..." he said looking defeated. Before he could re enter his jeep, she spoke up "Do you even know how to drive"?
"YES"! he blurted out, insulted she would ask such a thing. "Just...not very well..." he added under breath.
"And don't you dare say anything to anyone of this! he hissed out like a snake "If Ursula knew...she would think less of me" he muttered as well.
"Ah ha! You can't hide any secrets from me you know, still if you want, i can teach you how to drive if you want" she said with a smile. She knew the truth, Ursula wouldn't care if he could or couldn't drive, but hey, everyone has to do a good deed now and then, right?
...
"Wait, you said he couldn't drive" Lilith protested.
"Calling what i saw "driving" would insult Henry Ford, it was a wheeled train wreck, not to confuse you" she laughed. "Anyway, like i was saying..."
...
Sitting in a jeep, Erica began to explain how to start the engine to the nervous Karlslander.
"OK, so turn the key and-
"I know who to start a damn jeep, geezz"he groaned turning the key to little effect.
"Why is this not working"? he cried.
"Maybe because that's the Cigarette lighter" she sighed. "Your looking in the wrong side, keys on my side, it's a Liberian made jeep you know" she said pointing at the key. He moaned in frustration before turning the correct key and starting the engine properly.
"OK, so far your doing better then Trude" the blonde said smiling.
"Oh, what did Barkhorn do"? he asked.
"She slammed into a wall a few times, dented the bumper before it fell clean off...and that was before it caught fire..."
"She crashed it that hard"? he asked.
Erica recalled what happened, the brunet so angry she had emptied her MG-42 into the car in question before finishing it off wit a flamethrower and her fists.
"Uh sure, lets say that's what she did" she sighed.
"Now then, i want you to ease your foot unto the petal"
"Like a Me-109?" he asked.
"Yes, sure, like a 109, now carefully get a good feel for it, easy as ever i want you to back up"
"OK, now i just..." he creaked as the jeep slowly backed up, i they where racing snails, they would come in third. She watched as they drove back a few yards out of the vase courtyard and into the road.
"So, good, now just pull back in and we'll try it again" she said smiling and placing her hands carefree on the back of her head.
This went on for an hour, she gave him the basics of driving, as her father had taught her, and slowly she saw him improve, after enough time behind the wheel, he was almost up to her standards for driving.
The male nodded and turned his head back to the road, slowly he reversed, backing up back the way he had come only moment's before.
As they stopped again, an alarm sounded.
"Class Three Neuroi Inbound"! someone yelled over the base loud speaker. Erica cursed to herself opening the door to run to the Hangar that housed her Strikers. Before she could,Von Luck had pulled her back into the jeep.
"Let's put that teaching to the test"! he said gunning it, the force knocking her back into her seat. She pushed herself back up to see the Runway speed by and as quickly as they had started, the jeep jerked to a halt and she found herself at the Hangars.
"Thanks for driving Von Luck Taxi" he said with a Salute as she rushed out to Sortie...
...
They had beaten the Neruoi back, a rather easy victory, three of Karlslands finest vs a single type three Neuroi wasn't much of a battle. Still she was proud that she had taught someone else a skill, to her, that meant more then taking doen a class three.
But maybe she was just tired from missing her sixteen hours of sleep. Her warm bed almost beckend to her after she got back, under the arm covers she heard a new sound, a sharp swerve followed by a crash and a voice yelling "Opps, sorry"
She would never get a break, would she from him?...
...
"See"? she asked.
"See what"? Lilith asked back.
"THE POINT OF MY STORY"!
"Dads always going to be a bad driver"? she answered.
"Well...yes...but if you try your best and you don't Succeed..." Erica baited.
"Then you get what you want but not what you need"?
...
"Never mind Lily, just try your best and i know you can do it"
"I know, i did it well you where telling that story" she said pointing at the road, they where now a good distance from the house where they had started.
"You know something, your truly a Hartmann" Erica laughed with a smile. Lily also racked a smile at this.
Years latter she would think back tot his moment, when she proved to her self she could do anything, and she thanked Erica for showing her...
...
OK, before you ask, i want to know as well how Peter was an Boxer and astronaut too.
Peter "Oh, so people like Roland Sage and Toshiro can be all powerful wizards and gods, but i can have a few high bits in life and it's strange?
Yes it is.
Peter"Shut up!
...