Hand-in-hand

Hand in Hand
Date/Timing: March 2017
Setting: ends in Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong, China
== Scene One: Foggy ==
/Vulcan straightens, engines purring, frame humming.
Jack flips his comm, locks it 'open', announces, "/Vulcan Specter in the water. Our beacon and lights're on."
""We see you, /Vulcan,"" snickers Commander [x], "but do /you see /Shaolin?"
Logan opens his comm. "We see nothin' but fog."
""Your sensors, Rangers?"" prompts Marshal Xiong.
Jack flips through the various readouts. "Also nothing, ma'am." Frowns. "They're either out of our range or they've been sucked onto a parallel Earth."
‒ Nerd. ‒
‒ 凸(¬､¬) ‒
Logan huffs. "'ey, Curtains! Can you see any boats?" 
""Of course we can't,"" snaps Chao. ""It's dark out!""
Jack rolls his eyes. "Can you see any /lights?" 
Three seconds.
""I don't think so ....""
"Are you blockheads at least still in the water?"
""Yes.""
"That's something. About how deep is it?"
""Our display won't display,"" [gripes] Feng. 
Jack and Logan gaze heavenward. 
Jack suggests, "[Splash] around a bit."
""[Splash]—oh! Okay!""
Background engine [noise].
""Nearly to our knees.""
"So you're near a coast."
""You know where we are?"" hopes Feng.
「Not a clue, asshat.」
["Not yet—" 
「Just sit your orange ass down and /don't /move.」 
"[—but we'll] find you," assures Jack. ]
「「There's no need to be mean, Logan.」」
「Oh, I'm sorry. Which've us's managed to lose ourselves and seventy-five meters of robot?」
Jack raises his voice, asks, "LOCCENT, what's the last position you had for them?"
「「It's really foggy!」」
""The Banana Peel.""
Logan dons a falsetto. 「'It's really foggy!'」 Sniffs, 「What're you, five?」
"The what now?"
「「You know perfectly well I'm nineteen!」」
""It's what we call the rocks those two always slip and fall on.""
「Five, nineteen, whatever. You're a widdle baaa-by.」
Jack rolls his eyes. "Which's how they broke their [beacon, ay]?"
「「Now you've done it,」」 sighs Chao. 「「You've made him cry.」」
""Yea."" [x] sighs. ""I've put a pin in your map.""
「Are you fucking with me?」
‒ Shut up, Logan. ‒
‒ (¬､¬)凸 ‒ 
「「Why would I joke about that?」」
"Got it. Thanks. We'll mosey over there and see what we can see."
""Watch your step, /Vulcan.""
Giggles from LOCCENT.
Logan grumbles, 「You two are gonna owe us so bad for this.」
「「You'll have our undying gratitude.」」
「You're going to owe us something /worthwhile.」
‒ Shut /up, Logan. ‒
‒ 凸(¬､¬)凸 ‒
So /Vulcan goes trudge, trudge, trudge, trudge—
And, /finally, after forty-six minutes, the little green Jaeger icon reaches the bright yellow banana icon. 
"We're here—"
"And they're not."
"They're not even showing up on sensors yet," Jackson almost-whines. "How far did you guys walk?"
""I don't know!""
Jack grinds his teeth.
"Don't suppose you know what /direction you went, either?"
""Away from the rocks?""
‒ (ヽ `д´)┌┛★)`з゜) ‒
Jack snorts a laugh. "Look, guys, give us /something to work with here. Nobody wants to be [at this 'til sunrise]."
Five seconds.
""Marco?"" offers Feng.
‒ (－ˍლ) ‒
"For fuck's—that won't work with /radios," says Logan.
Eighteen seconds of embarrassed silence.
""What if we sound the horn and see if you hear it? And then you can sound your horn and we'll see if we hear it?"" 
"Good idea as any."
""Gentlemen,"" says the Marshal. ""I would prefer to avoid meeting with the Chief Executive about yet another 'disturbing the peace' violation.""
"Yes, ma'am."
""Yes, Marshal.""
""/Vulcan,"" she continues, ""run a clockwise spiral centered on your current location until /Shaolin turns up on your sensors.""
Logan whines internally.
"Yes, ma'am," chirps Jack and drags Logan and /Vulcan into a steady jog.
Tromp, tromp, tromp, tromp, tromp—
""Do you see us yet?""
"No."
Tromp, tromp, tromp, tromp—
""Do you see us yet?""
"/No."
Tromp, tromp, tromp— 
""How about now?""
"No, goddammit."
Tromp, tromp—
""What about—""
「You really /are fucking five.」
"Oh thank the Great Old Ones," mumbles Jackson. "We've got an echo!"
""We're saved!"" squee Feng and Chao.
"Relaying coordinates, LOCCENT."
""Received, /Vulcan.""
LOCCENT mumbles.
""Rangers Lin, upon completing decontamination, you will be explaining how you came to be lost less than a thirty-minute run from the Shatterdome.""
""It's really foggy!"" whines Feng.
""Yes, ma'am,"" says a contrite Chao.
"Hey, Jack?"
"Yea?"
"You're /sure that's a Jaeger?" Smirks. "Looks more like a container ship to me."
"Yeaaaaa ... now that you mention it—"
A high-pitched, pained noise from /Shaolin's comms.
"No, no, wait. That's /definitely a Jaeger." Turns to Logan. "Maybe you need to wear your—"
‒ (Ó_#)ò=(°□°ò) ‒
Jack winces, shakes his head clear. "Lings, can you see our lights?"
""I don't think so?""
「Are you lost /and blind?」
""There you are! I see you!"" A squee. ""I see you!""
""Go toward the light!"" intones [x].
Muffled laughter from LOCCENT.
/Shaolin's spotlights jump—
Chao squawks. 
—several meters, then approach rapidly—
「「Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!」」
「Don't—!」
/Vulcan tips backward—
Steel sings against steel, then metal groans under stress.
—crashes through the surface of the water—
Jackson and Logan wheeze under /Shaolin's weight on their chest.
—settles against the rocky bottom.
「Get. Off. Now.」
「「I thought I'd never see you again!」」
「/Now, Drapes.」
/Shaolin releases /Vulcan from her bear hug, rolls clear; both Jaegers push to standing.
"Okay, right, cool," says Jack. "We've got 'em, LOCCENT. Heading back."
""Copy, /Vulcan. C'mon home.""
"Right, then," says Logan, clamping his hand on /Shaolin's collar and shoving them forward. "Let's go."
""This is very undignified,"" sniffs Chao.
「I don't give a rat's ass about your dignity—」 
Jack explains, "We're /not hunting you down again, so we're keeping you where we can see you."
"'sides, how is this /more embarrassing than getting lost in one of the highest pieces of tech on Earth?"
""He has a good point, Brother.""
Chao sighs.
/Vulcan and /Shaolin trudge, trudge—
Then Chao says, ""Perhaps we could hold hands instead.""
"/No," snaps Logan.
""But your arm must be getting tired,"" Feng points out.
"Our muscles lock if we hold position long enough, so I'm not doing /any work."
"Let 'em go," orders Jack.
"But—"
"Just—"
"Fiiine—" Logan pries his fingers loose. "—but you're doing the holding."
Jack grumbles, sticks out his hand.
Feng takes it, coos, ""Thank you.""
Hand-in-hand, /Vulcan and /Shaolin trudge, trudge, trudge—
""We deeply appreciate you coming to our aid, especially so early in the morning.""
"You'd better be," mutters Logan.
Hand-in-hand, trudge, trudge, trudge, trudge—
""The sunrise is quite lovely today.""
Jack grunts.
Clanking.
Hand-in-hand, trudge, trudge, trudge, trudge, trudge—
Feng humming.
Clanking.
「If you're singing and /swinging our arms—」
Clanking stops.
「「For the record, it was a prayer chant,」」 says Chao.
「Suuuuure.」 
The tops of skyscrapers edge into view.
""Home sweet Hong Kong!"" cheers Feng.
"Whee," says Logan.
The sky between the mouth of the harbour and the Shatterdome buzzes with more helicopters than usual.
Logan and Jack exchange a look.
"LOCCENT, what's with all the air traffic?" Jack asks.
""That would be the media,"" says [x], croaking around a laugh. ""Losing a Jaeger may not be a big deal in Vladivostok, but here?"" 
Snickering. 
""They heard you were coming in together and—"" Chuckles. ""—must've decided they wanted pictures.""
‒ Marshal tipped 'em off. ‒
‒ Or Jamie did. ‒
Two seconds.
‒ We're never gonna live this down. ‒ 
‒ Nope, ‒ sighs Logan.
== Scene Two: Magnets ==
"/Vulcan and /Shaolin sitting' in a tree, K-I-S-S—"
Jackson strolls to a stop, clears his throat.
/Lucky techs scatter like roaches.
"/Never gonna live it down," he mutters, resuming his [turf-ward trudge].
""Shit! /Hot!""
Jackson peers into the rec. "Everyone okay?"
Juliet, biting her lip and flapping her left hand, nods.
"Turns out hot glue is actually hot," drawls Tsuki.
Juliet gives zhir a look.
Jackson ambles over—frowns. "The hell're you doing?"
"I got hold of one of the prototype /Shaolin Specter playsets—"
"With magnetized hands!"
Mini-/Vulcan's hand /clicks against mini-/Shaolin's and stays put.
"—and was dressing it up a little bit."
Jackson crosses his arms, grumps, "Why do we get the veil?"
"Because the bowtie would get lost on /Vulcan and the ivory looks awful with /Shaolin's colour," explains Juliet.
"I don't—"
"Remember your lectures on gender assumptions~," sings Tsuki.
Jackson ... concedes.
Juliet tweaks the bouquet of teeny silk roses in /Vulcan's free hand.
"The tie's crooked," Jackson mumbles.
Juliet and Tsuki beam at him.
Jackson /hmphs, spins on his heel, and shtumps out.
== Scene Three: Traditional ==
Logan strolls into Jack's room. "Jamie said you had ca—the holy fuck're you doing?"
He doesn't look up from his fiddling. "The bowtie's still crooked."
"The /fuck?"
Jack sits back, waves 'frustration' at the two bitty Jaegers on his desk. "Juliet glued the damn tie on wonky and I can't get it fixed."
"Tam gave you a fucking Jaeger /wedding playset—"
Jack scowls, pokes bitty /Shaolin's fist so it /clicks and fucking /sticks against /Vulcan's.
"—and you're /playing with it?"
"It's /crooked!"
"/That's what you're worried about?! Not, I dunno, the fact they're makin' fucking lovey-dovey dolls outta our Jaegers?!"
"They're kinda cute," mumbles Jack.
Logan throws up his hands and stomps off for less nerdy territory.
Which brings him, in short order, to the /Shaolin Rogue Ranger suite and Drapes' room.
He throws himself down on Drapes'—
"MAAAAUU!"
A streak of white flies out the door.
—bed, flops an arm over his eyes.
A cat immediately tucks itself into his armpit.
Another climbs—
"Oi there, Fishbreath."
—onto his stomach and curls up.
Drapes hums some silly little tune.
Logan sits up, displacing a number of rather miffed cats.
「Have a pleasant nap?」
「Yea, better than hanging out with—th' fu—you, too?!」
Drapes looks up from adjusting the cheongsam (why does he even /know that word?) on bitty /Vulcan. 「I thought I had the only one!」
Logan drags a hand down his face. 「Jack got one somehow.」
A cat claims his lap.
He reflexively scratches its ears.
「Why do we get the dress?」
「Because /Vulcan looks naked in black and the red clashes with /Shaolin's colour.」
Logan rolls his eyes.
Drapes straightens /Vulcan's little headdress and nudges the two Jaegers closer together.
「Did you sew that?」
Drapes scoffs, 「Of course not.」
Logan exhales.
「Brother did.」
Logan flops back. 「I knew it. I'm surrounded by nerds.」
Category:Ficlet
Category:Hong Kong (setting)
Category:Team Shaolin Rogue
Category:Team Vulcan Specter
Category:Logan
Category:Logan's POV
Category:Logan (ficlet)
Category:Jackson
Category:Jackson (ficlet)
Category:Chao
Category:Chao (ficlet)
Category:Feng
Category:Feng (ficlet)
Category:Xiong
Category:Xiong (ficlet)
Category:Jamie (mention)
Category:Ficlets with images
Category:Characters in need of Names
Category:Juliet
Category:Juliet (ficlet)
Category:Team Lucky Seven (mention)
Category:Tsuki
Category:Tsuki (ficlet)