For: Logan not here
Prompt: Minna and her perfected art of subtle affection for Mio.
She was asleep on the couch. Again.
Minna could tell that Mio was overworking herself; she could hear Mio nightly, practicing some sword attack that left her looking wearier and wearier as the days went by. And now she caught her on the couch. For the fourth time this week.
"If you can't even manage to get back to your room," Minna muttered, her fingers playing with a lock of Mio's hair, "then don't push yourself so hard."
Crouching down, Minna lifted her subordinate bridal style, silently wishing she had Trude's super strength. She didn't mind making a trip to Mio's room, however; she simply enjoyed being able to help the Fusoan when she needed it, even if the latter was always too stubborn to admit it.
Minna carefully placed Mio on her bed before returning Reppumaru to its stand. Tomorrow she would sneak her another portion of food during breakfast and scold her about falling asleep in her uniform.
Mio liked to drum her fingers when she was agitated. It was her way of venting her desire to move, to act, without actually doing something hasty.
(Minna liked to take note of all these little things Mio did.)
The Wing Commander could tell Mio was feeling cramped in the Junkers plane they were returning to their base in when she started shifting in her seat.
"Crazy, absolutely crazy. There's no way this will work," Mio spat under her breath. "What are they thinking?"
Minna stood and walked across the plane to the other bench where Mio sat. Sinking down beside her, she grabbed the hand that had been tapping violently against metal seat. She placed the hand in her lap and began stroking the individual fingers until Mio's muscles relaxed.
"We'll think of something. 'Nothing's impossible for a witch,' right?" Minna asked, enjoying the way Mio's calloused fingers felt against hers.
Mio nodded and smiled grimly, intertwining their fingers and squeezing Minna's hand. "Right," Mio affirmed.
Her bags halfway were packed and the plane for Fuso would leave in a few hours. Minna was sad, of course, but their parting was a long time coming. She considered herself lucky to have been given a second chance to work with Mio.
"You'll visit?" Mio asked, dropping her folded, white swimsuit in a duffle bag.
"Whenever I get the chance," Minna answered, fully intending to but knowing those chances would be few and far between.
Mio shot her a grin over her shoulder. "I'll be looking forward to it."
Minna couldn't help but return the smile. When Mio's not looking, she'll slip a bag of those Karlslandian butter cookies Mio likes so much into her duffle, and when Yoshika and Mio's plane is ready to depart, she'll give her faithful Squadron Leader an extra long and tight hug.
And maybe one day she'll forget all the little details about Mio that made her fall so deep in love, but she knows that day is far, far away.
A/N: Huh, I churned this one out pretty quickly. Here's to hoping this is to your tastes, Logan.
Like last time, if you see a typo, something weird, or something that makes no sense, please point it out so I can fix it. In other news, I'm still taking requests, so you're still welcome to push a prompt you'd like to see filled.