Macross Fan Fiction ❯ Iron Curtain ❯ Part 2 ( Chapter 2 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

I'd like to thank those who reviewed. It really got me going with
the second part ( now if only that could work with those midterms
I had to do...). Also... Happy New Year! May it be a happy and
peaceful one for all. Enjoy.


STANDARD DISCLAIMER: I don't own Macross, etc. The team
name I'm using has nothing to do the baseball team.


Iron Curtain

by Shinto Red

Part 2:


With one last ding, the elevator's door swished open. A
young woman with her hair pulled up and dressed in her civilian
clothing brushed passed Hikaru when he stepped out of the elevator.
He quickly glanced back before the doors closed with a small grin
on his face.

' I've been around Sempai too long.' he thought. ' I'm starting
to see some of the perks of being an officer that he mentioned. '

He combed the floor until he found the proper number and
nameplate combination. He started to straighten his uniform until he
realized what he was doing. ' What does it matter what I look like.
It's not like I'm asking her on a date. '

He ran a hand through his hair before knocking thrice.
Seconds ticked as he waited with baited breath. But there was no
response. He tried again, but still there was no response.

' Guess she's on duty. I thought I heard Shammy though..."

He glanced at his wrist watch. ' Still early. '

A smile spread on his face. ' Maybe I can do something
with Minmei. '

He pulled out his mobile phone and pushed the speed dialer.
The ringing seem to go on for an eternity before he heard the familiar
hello. " Hey Minmei. I was wondering if you wanted to do something
today. Maybe we can go to a cafe or movie."

" Oh, I'd love to, Hikaru, but I can't. The restaurant is packed
with people. I guess everyone decided to celebrate. "

" Oh. " he said in a dejected tone. " I guess another time then. "

" Bye Hikaru... Oh wait. Wish me luck. "

" Wish you luck...? "

She giggled. " For the Miss Macross contest, silly. Since you
can't make it, the least you can do is wish me luck for tomorrow."

" Oh...right. Good luck. "

" Bye again. " she chirped.

" Bye..."

Click.

He shoved his phone into his pocket. His head lowered slightly,
he scuffled back to the elevators and half-heartedly pushed the 'down'
button.

" What's with the long face? "

Hikaru's head shot up. " Sorry. Didn't mean to startle you. "

" Claudia..."

Her brows furrowed together. ' First Misa, now the boy. Do we
need to add Prozac to the water supply? '

" Shouldn't you be celebrating with the others? "

Hikaru just shrugged his shoulders. " What's on your mind? "

" Nothing. Just some stuff. "

She recalled Roy telling her about Hikaru's love interest.
" Minmei? "

" One part. "

She raised an eyebrow. " What's the other part? "

He was tempted to tell her everything. She was, after all, the
closest to Lt. Hayase. A part of him, though, still prevented him from
saying anything. ' What if I do more harm than good? '

" Nothing. "

Claudia gave him a skeptical look. " You sure? "

" Yeah. "

" Do you want to talk about the first part? "

" There's nothing to talk about. She's busy either helping out
with the family business. "

" Isn't she going to participate in the contest tomorrow? "

Hikaru couldn't hide his distaste. " Yeah. "

" Why don't you go out anyway? I'm there's plenty to do with
that team winning. "

Hikaru's mood seemed to brighten with that thought. " You're
right. There's probably loads of things to do. "

She smiled. " That's the spirit. Go have some fun. At least
someone's going to take my advice for once. "

Realizing who she was referring to, Hikaru's face became
serious once more.

" Did I say something wrong? "

" No... it's just... " He shut his eyes, hoping to block the image
out of his mind. The image of her crying. He could hear her screams
once more. It was different this time...he could make out what she
screaming...

" Riber..." he whispered.

Claudia looked startled. " What did you say? "

He pulled himself out of his trace. " Who or what is Riber? "

" Where'd that come from? "

Hikaru squirmed slightly. " I heard Lt. Hayase mention that after
we escaped from Mars. "

She frowned slightly. " She just mentioned it? "

Hikaru stammered out his answer. " Y..y...yeah."

Claudia wanted to probe him further, but at that moment the
elevator and quickly jumped.

" Uh... thanks for the advice." he rushed through while scratching
the back of his head. " See ya! "

As soon as the doors to his elevator closed, the doors to the
second opened revealing Roy with a bottle of champagne.

" Hello gorgeous! I see you just couldn't wait for me! "

Claudia still had her mouth open, the question she wanted to ask
on the tip of her tongue. " I never knew you were in such awe of me. "

Claudia shook herself out of her stupor. " Don't flatter yourself. "

Roy brought splayed his free hand over his heart, a look of
mock hurt on his face. " You're cruel, woman. I deserve reparations
for the pain you caused. "

She placed a hand on her hip. " And what do I owe for your 'pain'."

His eyes seemed to take on a predatory look. He let out a growl.
" This. "

He scooped her into his arms and ran to her quarters. Claudia
glanced back at the elevators once more. ' Why did the boy act like
that? And where did he ...?'

Her thoughts were cut off by a very insistent pair of lips. He
gently lowered her back onto her feet, only to catch her once more
when she started to fall. A smug look was on his face.

" Can you stand? "

She gave him a playful slap. " Of course. You're not that great. "

He let her and made a grand show of how he locked the door. She
tried to keep a straight face, but failed miserably. Her laughter died on her
lips when she saw the look in his eye.

" Let's start celebrating. "



******************************************************************

Hikaru's mood had been lifted considerably. Children and adults
walked around town with the team colors. There was a celebratory rally
at the amphitheater that could be heard from every part of town. People
were singing, dancing and laughing in the streets. Even the opposing team's
fans joined in the celebrations.

' It's good to see everyone in such a good mood. ' he thought. ' It
feels almost like everything is normal. '

He frowned when he heard some screaming that didn't seem to
come from a boisterous fan. He scanned the street and found the source.
Three men had surrounded a woman in front of a bar. She tried to get
passed them, but them they started to shove her around. Hikaru chivalrous
side bubbled to the surface with his anger and he tried to squeeze his way
through the crowd.

Smack!

One of the guys went down after the woman gave him a right hook.
" Damn! What an arm! "

' Hey! It's the woman I saw at the elevators. '

Another man grabbed her arm. Hikaru started to push even harder
through the crowd.

' Why isn't anyone doing anything! '

Glancing around he saw far too many glazed eyes and people who
were none too steady on their feet.

" Let me through! " he growled in frustration.

The woman tried to pull away from the man, but that only
resulted with him squeezing her arm even harder. She gritted her
teeth before lifting her knee in one swift movement. The man's
grip loosened considerably and he quickly fell on top of the
first man.

Hikaru winced. ' Note to self. Never piss off a service woman.
Eh... never mind. '

Hikaru's eyes widened. " Watch out!"

It was too late. The third man had more success than his
other drunken predecessors. He grabbed her from behind and lifted
her up; she was kicking and screaming as he tried to get her into an
alley.

Hikaru jumped on the man, wrapping an arm around his neck.
The man lost his grip and the woman pushed herself away, stumbling
onto the ground. The man pulled Hikaru's arm away, spun around and
tried to take a swing. Hikaru easily dodged the sloppy punch.

" My turn. " Hikaru took one swing and the man went down.

Hikaru went to the woman who was still on her hands knees.

" Are you- "

Hikaru never completed the question. An elbow to the gut
knocked the wind out of him and brought him to his knees. ' Smart, Hikaru.
Smart. Why from behind? '

The woman kicked off her shoes and ran. She briefly glanced back and
Hikaru froze.

' Those eyes... that couldn't be... '

He quickly got up only to be reminded by his stomach of why that was a
bad idea.

" Lt. Hayase! " he shouted.

He could see her stop momentarily in the distance before she
resumed her run. That was all the incentive he needed. He ignored the
pain and ran after her.



***************************************************************

Misa's chest burned with each painful breath. She had been
running for several blocks trying to get away from the bar, the past and
the frustrating young man who was trailing her

" Hayase! " he called out.

" Leave me alone. " she whispered.

He called out to her in their mother tongue. " Hayase-san!
Please stop! "

She faltered and he was able to use this opening to grab her.
She spun around and tried to swing at him, but he was prepared and
caught her right hand. He wasn't prepared for the left hand that slapped
across his face. He quickly shook himself out of his stupor and tried to
grab her again. She tried to shove him away, which only caused her to
loose balance.

Misa tried to adjust herself for impact, but impact never came. She
felt strong arms wrapped around her waist. " Guess I saved you again. "

Misa shoved him away once again and stumbled to her knees.

He cautiously approached her. " Lieutenant ? "

Her shoulders were shaking and her face was in her hands. A choked
sound would come from time to time.

" Hayase? "




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Comments: ShintoRed@yahoo.com or review.


Wow. I'm on a roll. Hehe. I can't promise that the next part will be out
as quick, though. I’ll just try my best.