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Don't ask me.....LOL ********************************** Prompt #208--Script. "I dunno...." Joe wondered aloud, voice laced with doubt and a hint of trepidation, as he stared at the sheet of paper in his hand. He glanced over at Ken, who was also frowning as he read his own copy. "Can we really do this?" The Eagle looked up, the expression on his face was uncertain. "W-e-ell," he replied, running a hand through his shaggy hair. "I think it's expected of us by now." "That's what I was afraid of..."Joe muttered, glancing down at the paper again. He continued reading his face growing pale. "Lo...LOOK at this Ken!," he shouted flipping his page around to face his friend and jabbed a finger at the neatly typed lines on it. "No way in HELL am I doing that!" Ken squinted at the writing. "Yeah, that's pretty bad Joe. But just be glad you're not Jun! Did you see...?" "Huh? What? No...where?!," he asked crossing the few feet to stand next to him peering down at the paper in Ken's hand. "Here?" "No further down. See...look ...right here." Ken told him, their heads bowed close together. He pointed to a lengthy paragraph, complete with a diagram . "See what I mean?" He waited while Joe read. Watched as he turned the paper sideways, then upside-down, trying to decipher the drawing. Their eyes met, then slid away in something akin to embarrassment. "Oh man, is she going to be pissed .." Joe commented, trying to stifle the chuckle that was struggling to work its way from his throat. Just then an angry shout sounded from down the hall. A very loud feminine shout of anger. "No! I'm can't believe they expect me ....!" The thud of a slamming door shook the walls and they heard voices arguing with one another, the screaming reaching an ear shattering crescendo. "Well as far as I'm concerned, you two have it easy." Ken grumped, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back against the table. "I don't know what you're complaining about...." "Oh...cry me a river! " Joe said rolling his eyes. "You're Gatchaman, you have to do these things. It shouldn't surprise you." "Yeah, so?" he challenged angrily. "Why can't I catch a break ..just for once, huh?" The two of them started at each other for a few moments, dust motes floating in the mid morning sunshine that streamed through the window. "Well," Joe said slowly, pulling the keys to the G2 out of his jacket pocket and dangling them in the air. "We can always cut and run..." Ken's blue eyes lit up at the prospect of tearing out of there, and leaving the whole....thing.. behind, but just as quickly, his shoulders slumped. There was no way he could leave Jun,Jinpei and Ryu to face this alone. It appeared they all had a part to play and unfortunately they needed to do it. "We have to do this." Ken said quietly, staring down at the floor. "We're expected to follow the script...."

I'm just scared to ask what play this is!

Redbird: LOL, I love the nod to the Cut and Run books! I wonder if they're reading the script for the show itself or something else. Maybe Joe's just discovered he has to do the centrifuge! Though I'm wondering what has Jun so pissed off too.

The first thing that came to mind is that Jun found out that those forward rolls in flight were just for the panty shots ... LOL I could also picture Ken's part reading: Pose with hands on hips, looking off into distance a lot. *snerk*

Happy holidays everyone! *** He returned a few minutes later, a large brown paper bag tucked into the crook of one arm.  Without any explanation, he put the bag in the back seat, then got it, started the car and headed out.  Even though he didn't say what was in the bag, Jun could smell the scent of warm bread and something close to sugar cookies and her stomach rumbled appreciatively. Looking to the dashboard clock, she was surprised to see that it was well past lunch time. They rolled through the winding countryside, the narrow road ribboning up a steep mountain until at last they saw a large wooden sign that announced the start of the Kilmeny Falls hiking and walking trails.  Red Impulse turned in and parked in the open space beyond the sign.  There were no other cars and the only sounds that could be heard were her and Red Impulse getting out of the car.  Once the doors were shut, everything returned to a quiet hush. "Which way?" she asked, squinting against the sun as she turned to face Red Impulse, who was once more cradling the brown bag. "Which way do you think?" he asked back, pulling the map from his jacket pocket and handing it to her.  Jun frowned as she took the paper, then unfolded it. The same rough, general map of the village and its surroundings greeted her, along with the X's that Red Impulse had made previously, marking where they had been that day.  Only now, though, she saw that he had added a few marks. One of which marked the inn where they were staying, the other circled the name of Kilmeny, where they now stood.  The last mark was a small dot, seemingly put there by accident, in the middle of what looked like nothing but forested land. A prick of unease went down Jun's spine.  To anyone else looking at the map, the dot might go unnoticed, or look like an erroneous mark, but as Jun calculated the distance of the dot to the thick line that denoted the largest road running through the map, she knew exactly what that dot represented. She looked up and studied the trails that led out from the car park.  The park's rangers had thoughtfully placed signs at the beginning each, giving the distance of the trail, the degree of difficulty, and the proper attire required.  Some trails, she noticed, were even cleared with a layer of small stones to make walking easier. Had she been left to her own devices, Jun would have picked one of those.  Looking at Red Impulse's map, however, she looked towards one that announced it was moderately difficult and that proper hiking shoes or boots were recommended.  Jun curled her toes in her slip-on shoes.  They weren't meant for such rough terrain, but they would have to do. "That one," she said, nodding the direction of the chosen trail.  She handed the map back to him and he tucked in one-handed back into his pocket. "That's what I thought too," he said, his eyes scanning the sky and then the area around them.  "Let's go." At first, the trail was fairly level and even had the same crushed stone that the other paths had, but after awhile, that ended and they found themselves on a narrow dirt path, pushing through the weeds and undergrowth that threatened to reclaim it. Jun kept an eye and ear open as they went, but the only noises they heard were the birds and the only movements came from the small animals that they accidentally startled as they walked by.  Jun watched as a small red squirrel made a flying leap from the tree he had been hanging onto to a nearby branch.  The branch rebounded with the squirrel's weight and the animal was forced to hang on and wait until the branch stopped its wild bouncing.  Nearby, another squirrel began a loud chittering. Jun smiled, the small rodent reminding her of Jinpei.  Jumping from a solid tree to a slender branch without thinking was exactly something he would do. And telling him to be careful would be exactly what I would do, she thought, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.  It was a script as old as time, the recklessness of a younger sibling and the nagging of an older one. Without warning, Jun felt an almost overwhelming sadness swamp her, one that was filled with longing to be with Jinpei and the guys and an ache to be back home, at the Snack J, surrounded by everything familiar and comforting and not tramping around in some dark forest with a strange man she barely knew. Maybe I should have told Jinpei what I was really going to do, Jun thought, dodging around a branch.  Maybe I should have brought him with me.  At least then there would have been the two of us and Red Impulse .... Jun's thought stopped there.  If there had been two of them, Red Impulse would have called Nambu for certain.  Jun wanted to look back, to see if she could read any kind of emotion on the man's face, but she knew if she looked back, he would ask her why.  She forced herself to keep her eyes on the trail ahead and kept going. After a solid half an hour of uphill hiking, the trail opened up to a small clearing that had a few benches lining the edge, along with a handful of picnic tables and some rusted out hibachi grills. From the edge of the outcropping, Jun was surprised to see just how far up the mountain they were.  The valley spread out before them in undulating green waves.  As she turned in place, Jun could see the top of the Old Mill and, further away, the one side of the Witterdon Castle's crenelated tower room. Another turn and she saw the trail that they had just come up, but beyond that, she could just barely catch the edge of the village and the road.  Then she made one more slight turn and she saw it, the whole reason for the trip in the first place -- the flat rectangular rooftops of Reading Industries clustered together like a child's stack of blocks and creating a hole in the otherwise uniform cover of the treetops. She knew that Reading wasn't all that far, but she was surprised at just how close they really were when roads weren't a consideration. "It's breathtaking, isn't it?" she breathed out, turning again in place, her eyes scanning far out to the dusty blue horizon line. "That's one word for it," Red Impulse said, placing the bag down on a picnic table.  As he began to unpack it, Jun went over, curious to see what he had gotten. Two small paper bags of homemade kettle potato chips and napkins were the first things out, then came two sandwiches wrapped in thick white waxed paper.  After that, there were two bottles of water, one of which Jun immediately claimed and opened. She did not realize how dusty and parched her throat was until the cold water washed down to her stomach.  Putting the bottle down, she claimed one of the sandwiches as Red Impulse stood there, frowning into the paper bag.  Jun eyed him curiously as she carefully slid onto one of the warped wooden benches that lined the long sides of the table. The table, too, was of untreated wood, its ends left to uncurl and warp slightly in the exposure to the elements.  Still, the silver wood seemed in keeping with the area and was not as jarring as something made of plastic would have been. She unwrapped her sandwich, still watching Red Impulse as he reached into the bag. "I didn't ask for anything else," he said, more to himself than to her, "so what is this?"  He flipped over the nearly square paper wrapped bundle and folded back an edge.  The sides of two thick cookies peeked back out at them.  "Huh.  I guess she thought we would want dessert." Jun grinned and could not resist.  "I think she likes you," she singsonged, ending with a small laugh.  The look Red Impulse shot her made her clap her hand over her mouth as she laughed again. Okay, she grudgingly admitted to herself, it was kind of fun to tease somebody about liking and being liked.  It still didn't excuse Jinpei for doing it to her, especially where the guys were concerned, but she could see why he kept doing it. "So long as she contains herself to cookies, I'm fine with that," Red Impulse retorted, taking a seat opposite Jun.  His face was a dusky red beneath his tan and Jun realized with a start that he was actually embarrassed.  She had made him blush!  For reason, that thought alone made her absurdly happy.  She picked up a half of the sandwich and looked at it.  Thick cuts of turkey were piled two inches thick on the soft, crusty bread, with slices of bright red tomato and emerald frilled arugula on one side.  Jun bit in, and as the tastes all combined in her mouth, there were a few hints of flavors that she did not immediately recognize.  She finished chewing and then took a second, harder look at the sandwich.

RIgirl: Aw, she finally "won" with him. And hope the sandwiches aren't nefarious!

ok, here is a sappy, miserable answer to your challenge! 12-24-2015 6:45pm Walking home from the train station one hand holds my briefcase and with the other I pull my collar closer to my neck, wishing I'd remembered my scarf. Couples hurry around me, wrapped around each other to keep warm in the snow, eager to enjoy their Christmas Eve dinners. They occupy every restaurant and even the darker corners of the park across the street. For a moment I am intensely jealous, but in the next I remind myself to stick to the script. I have cultivated an image of a man immersed in his work, the happily oblivious bachelor, a total company man. True or not, it's the role I chose for myself. The kids are older now and have their own, sometimes baffling Christmas traditions (Waffles?). Every year since they'd gone active, there'd been an invitation to Christmas Eve dinner at Juns, but not this year. I gave a mental shrug and crossed the narrow street to my house. A separation had been inevitable, I was no longer their foster father, I was their boss. The death of Red Impulse and his secret had severed what remained of Kens loyalty, excluding me from their tight knit group. Painful but unavoidable. I fumbled my keys out of my overcoat pocket, dropping them in the snow that had drifted in front of my door. As I crouched down to retrieve them, the reality of a cold house and my first Christmas Eve alone hit and I contemplated walking away from it all, leaving earths problems to other people and this house with all it's memories to a new occupant. But I put the key in the lock and pushed the door open, dropping my briefcase in its usual spot before taking off my coat and hat. It took me a moment to notice the house was warm and the aroma of dinner was wafting from deeper inside the house. As I turned to investigate, the lights came on and with a shout of "Merry Christmas!" I was surrounded by my children. Jinpei jumping up and down, shouting, "Did we surprise you?!" Jun ducking under my arm to give me a hard hug I didn't know I needed. "You didn't really think we'd leave you alone for Christmas did you?" Joe leaning against the hall in his usual pose, sticking his hand out to shake mine, but pulling me into a momentary squeeze as he whispered in my ear. "Merry Christmas...dad." Ryu pumped my hand and led me towards the living room where the glow of a real Christmas tree waited on its tired but much loved decorations, the gifts I'd sent over to Jun's piled under its branches. Ken was standing by the fireplace, his expression carefully neutral, a nod his only acknowledgement. He was here and that would have to be enough. 888888888888888 Later, after they'd gone, I wandered through the house, picking up wrapping paper and empty boxes, collecting the usual chaotic mess that accompanied my foster children when I noticed a plain envelope on the kitchen island with my name written on it in Kens familiar scrawl. I sat on the barstool and just looked at it for a few minutes, deciding whether I wanted to know what was inside. He'd been distant since that day, from everyone, but especially from me. I understood it and I thought I'd prepared myself...now I wasn't so sure. Losing the child I loved the most for keeping a secret my closest friend has asked of me...the double loss would be unbearable. Decision made, I reach for the envelope and tear it open, letting the contents spill out on the counter. I get up and pour myself a glass of liquid courage before picking up his letter and heading to my study. My hands shake as I unfold the sheets of printer paper and I realize that he has written this over a period of time as it's written in several different ink colors. Smoothing the sheets over my knee I begin. Page 1 Hakase, You have betrayed me in the worst way possible. How could you keep this from me? Every time I asked for my father, or insisted he was still alive, you changed the subject or told me I was being stubborn. All while knowing you were the one to send him away from me and my mother. You killed her too, her death was just longer and more painful than his. I don't think I can ever forgive you for this. You have destroyed my family, my life. Jun has accused me of being childish, pointing out that they've all suffered the loss of their parents, even Ryu lost his mother. She can't seem to understand why I'm so angry. Can't she see that everything has been a lie? I trusted you, looked to you for how the world should be, tried to live up to your example of an honorable man. You have no honor. My father has no honor. Page 2 I was cleaning out my quarters in Coral Crescent with the intent of never sleeping there again when I found an old scrapbook under the bed. There were pictures of my parents, news clippings of my father and the final article about his "accident". After that was you and I. Pictures of you in a suit with a frowning child stuck to your leg. In every picture of us, I'm miserable. There are pictures of me with my mother, and in the beginning I'm happy, but I see my own smile start to fade as she gets sicker. Pages and pages of photos, Joe with me in the later ones, then the others. I looked through this album every day for a week before I noticed that you weren't in the pictures any longer even though I know you were there. That's when it hit me. Through everything, you were there. 家族, the first kanji Joe learned, has been our secret Christmas card since that first year, but its only now that I understand the true meaning of family and forgiveness. I will find a way to forgive my father in time and I've come to think he might have done me the ultimate favor by leaving me with you, my homemade kazoku. I hope you can forgive me for being so thoughtless. Jun was right, I was acting like a spoiled child instead of being grateful for the family I have right in front of me. Thank you, chichi, for being there, always. Kimi-tachi no musuko, Kenjiiro Your son, Ken P.S. I've thought about tearing up this first page a hundred times. It hurts me to read it and I'm ashamed that I even had these thoughts, but I wanted you to know how I felt and you've always told me to show my work, not just the answer. A noise alerts me to his presence. I don't know how long he's been there, waiting for me to finish, waiting for my reaction. I can see by the way he stands, he's uncertain of his reception. Words are useless so I stand and offer him my hand. He stares at it for an instant before he takes it and I pull him close, the son of my heart. Redemption comes in many forms, but forgiveness is often the most sought after and the hardest to attain. He and I have a lot to talk about, but for now we conent ourselves with boxes of old pictures, some he's seen, many he hasn't. I have so much to tell him... (the kanji is the symbol for family:kazoku)

ED: Aw, that made my eyes all leaky. I love it!

Thanks! I'm a little maudlin this time of year...

*sniffle* Very poignant, ED (and I get the same way around this time of year, too)

Thank you! At least it had a semi happy ending!

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Well, at least they know her version of the truth now! I feel sorry for the baby....

And now Nambu and Anderson know what a huge and capable liar she is. Who knows how much she told Galactor and, well,

Yeah, I'm not feeling sorry for her either. Even if her story is true (and I doubt it's completely true) she set out to entrap Joe knowing full well what she was doing. She could have gone to Nambu then, but she didn't.