Here you'll find

 

Mount Robillard

 

 

 

 

12. A Party

Thick dark eyebrows furrowed in concentration. Large hands ghosted over fine-tuning switches with astonishing dexterity, touched a slide here, caressed a dial there. A nod from below, and the hands fell away from the panel, accompanied by a deep sigh of contentment.

Fonzo shifted to lean on the makeshift railing and Corinn's grin instantly gave way to a horrified yelp.

"Keep your hulk away from that! You'll break it!"

"Oh? I expected something more robust from you," Fonzo retorted but moved obligingly away from the temporary constructions.

"It is robust enough, but not for sitting on! I still need to take the thing apart, too."

"Don't worry, I'll help you with that."

Fonzo joined his friend who was standing in the middle of the dance floor not that the canteen had ever had one, but somehow the newly rearranged tables and serving racks strongly suggested that.

The catering people were busily decorating plates and trays on the racks, getting them ready to receive whatever the bustle inside the kitchen was about to place on them. One side table was dedicated to drinks, and a respectable collection there was, too. In addition to the supply they had obtained from the city, a diverse collection of various specialties had somehow materialized on the table in the course of the day. And the Control Room had been hard at work all day, making sure that their party could not be disturbed by anything short of a massive earthquake, deploying any and all security measures they could activate to guarantee their privacy.

"Hey, don't you think we ought to go change?" Corinn jerked his head towards the door. "Those suits you insisted on us wearing, they're a bitch to get into. I'm not sure I'll manage it in five minutes."

"Still here?"

Both men turned, saw a faintly familiar-looking man enter the canteen from the Control Room door, and wracked their brains for a few moments before their eyes were able to confirm that they were indeed looking at the person their ears had recognized immediately.

"You'd better get ready, gentlemen, after all you're the masters of ceremony here, and I think everybody'll start pouring in pretty soon considering how enthusiastic they've been!"

"You're right." Fonzo eyed the blond man in a slightly shimmering, electric blue suit with some astonishment. "It won't do if we're still here in our work overalls when everybody else is looking their best."

"Yup. Let's get going now!" Corinn pulled him along by the arm and they trotted out of the room.

Arria looked around and smiled. When Corinn had first come to him with the outrageous suggestion, he'd practically leaped at the opportunity, and Osip had been no less excited. They'd given the two a modest allowance to spend, plus the permission to speak about their plan to the canteen people. Word had spread quickly and it had soon become apparent that there wasn't a single soul in the Robillard base who wasn't ecstatic at the event. Not even a couple of minor skirmishes with the Union luckily without any rebel casualties had managed to dull the expectant atmosphere.

Over the past week Arria had first suspected and then been certain that the canteen was economizing on foodstuffs in order to provide more lavishly for the party, but nobody certainly begrudged them. Now, with so little time left until the designated time, everybody was busy in their rooms getting into party clothes that had been all but forgotten, the kitchen staff working in overdrive to get everything ready so that they could have the night off with the others.

Yes, it felt very nice to wear that suit again. Arria fiddled with a lapel and sighed. It had been one of his favorites, back when he'd still worked at the flight control, before... well, before.

"Hmm, and what have we got here?" Arria literally jumped upon hearing Osip's voice so close behind him. "I think I know this guy, even though he's clearly trying to be in disguise."

"You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

Arria turned around and succeeded in not gasping too audibly at the black-and-white phenomenon standing in front of him, hands on hips. What was it with Osip and close-fitting clothes? Especially ones that were a stern black with a distinct military air about them and blinding white trims accentuating every dip and bulge of well-toned muscle in his body. And damn but there were many of those.

"Umh... what're you doing here already?" Stupid question, Arria berated himself, but it was the best approximation of small talk he could come up with at the moment.

"The same as you, I think." Osip raised a suggestive eyebrow. "I hear there's going to be a party tonight, somewhere around here. And I thought I'd have some fun. Won't you sit down with me?"

"Sure..."

Arria was grateful to accept the offered seat. At least it gave him a moment to steady his suddenly wobbly knees. He was even more grateful when, a moment later, the first of the pilots sauntered in and came to chat with their Commander. Arria silently thanked the guys for the chance to compose himself again.

"Is this supposed to look like this?" Corinn tried to twist his head around, suspiciously peering at his own backside. "I mean, this feels kinda weird."

"Wait," Fonzo commanded and pulled the jacket straight. "There, now it's right. What about me?"

"Just splendid," Corinn assured and checked his cuffs. "Pheww, at least I'm in it now. You look good, by the way."

"Not bad yourself!" Fonzo shrugged himself into his own jacket and closed the zipper. "Good thing, too, there's not much time left."

"If I had fully understood what I'm getting myself into, I bet I'd have decided to shop only for myself," Corinn grumbled. "Getting even this suit was tough enough. I hope it's gonna be worth all the trouble."

"Do you doubt it?" Fonzo laughed. "I know you've been dying to see what you've been shopping for, but don't think I'm any less curious! Don't worry, Lancer baby won't let us down."

"He'd better not." Corinn sat down to buckle his shoes.

"He's been a professional, after all."

"Sure, sure... but you weren't the one suffering all that humiliation and sweating under the knowing leers of the shop assistants! Well, at least he knew his sizes exactly. Saved me from a lot more, so I didn't have to go about trying to guess what'd fit my petite girlfriend and what wouldn't."

Fonzo chuckled. He had heard enough of Corinn's adventures in Trelissac's numerous lignerie boutiques, shoe shops and ladies' dressmakers to have had many a good laugh. He'd helped his friend in smuggling the suspicious packages to Lancer's room without anyone noticing anything, but at least he'd been spared the awkwardness of actually facing the formidable salespeople, picking the exactly right frosted-lime eye shadow, and estimating what kind of heels would best bring the beautiful curve of ankles to advantage.

"I hope he's not going to budge at the last minute," Corinn mumbled. "I'm really nervous, you know. If he'd allowed us to see or hear him practice at least once..."

"Take it easy! Relax, man!" Fonzo urged. "Stop worrying, now. This is an order. Come on, we must go pick Scott up."

He took a deep breath, combed fingers through his hair once more, and opened the door.

Appraising greenish eyes met another equally steady pair in the mirror. Cleverly applied shading and rouge shortened and rounded the face. Layers of eye shadow enlarged the black-rimmed eyes into huge proportions and the red mouth pouted in a way that could only be described as 'cute'. The hair was not exactly right, but it would have to do. In the strong lights it would look blonder anyway, with the silvery shimmer that a rapid rinse with bleach had given it.

Lancer picked fake violet nails from the table and began to clip them on, then stopped to put on the long hanging earrings that made his neck look longer and softer, before attaching the last ones. He looked again at the echo of bygone days in the mirror and felt his heart skipping a few beats. Under the bun the face, framed with a few artfully hanging locks, was beginning to look eerily familiar.

He took the soft, clinging, shimmering dress from the back of his chair and shimmied into it. The high collar fastened in the back and covered the strap that held his slightly padded underwear in place, and it also served to hide his Adam's apple. The back was low-cut, one of Marie's trademarks, but instead of a side slit this one opened in the front up to mid-thigh and revealed his shapely legs at every step.

Lancer took support from the chair, resolutely keeping his gaze away from the mirror, and stepped carefully into the shoes. Damn, relearning to walk in them had been about the toughest thing of all! He took a few steps to make sure his feet were comfortably in the shoes, then lifted his left hand on his hip and turned to look into the mirror over his shoulder, chin demurely low.

Queen Marie looked back at him, a little slimmer, a little more mature, and a lot more experience in her eyes. For a while she stood still, then a coy smile slowly crept on her lips.

"I need some more lipstick," she breathed and reached a narrow hand towards the table.

Scott stopped at the door, breathless. It was incredible how much different the canteen looked now, with everything in different places and lights nicely dimmed. And the people! The place was full of them and just look at what they were wearing! Scott edged inside behind Corinn and Fonzo and sat by the table they had reserved for him, near the little equipment dais constructed in a corner.

Everybody was in a festive mood, laughing and chatting cheerily, marveling at each others' rediscovered party gear, sipping drinks and nibbling at snacks. It took a while before Scott managed to recover from the sheer vastness of it all and was able to follow the big mechanics to the serving tables. If he had found the different-looking foodstuffs fascinating before, now he couldn't tear himself away from them at all, just stood there gaping at how many colors and shapes food could be made into. He even took a glass of something alcoholic before heading back to the table, mindful of Lancer's warning. He was going to be careful with it, but he definitely did want to have a try!

It would have been nice if Lancer were sitting there with him, but he'd be joining them later on. Scott tried to look like there was nothing amiss and succeeded rather nicely. Of course it helped that the place was so packed and everybody was talking so animatedly. Besides, the evening's program would start with the live show part, so nobody would have too much time to notice Lancer's absence. Scott decided that watching Corinn working on the dais would be a nice pastime, and indeed got so engrossed in it that Fonzo's appearance on the dance floor took him by surprise.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Fonzo's deep voice boomed in the room and everyone turned to look at him. "Welcome to the first ever Robillard Party! I'm really honored to have been nominated the host of this evening, and I'm not going to bore you by long speeches. Just let me begin by thanking our Commanders who took such a favorable attitude towards this idea..."

His words were drowned by thunderous applause, and the two Commanders stood up.

"Before Fonzo goes on, I want to thank him and Corinn for the superb idea of having this party in the first place," Osip said. "It's pretty easy to say 'yeah, go ahead' when somebody thinks of something this good."

"We're glad that everyone could make it here tonight," Arria joined in. "Thank you, guys. Now let's just make this a night to remember!"

They sat down and Fonzo waited, smiling broadly, until he could be heard again.

"Well, that's exactly what we've planned, me and my old pal Corinn, who's right over there, taking care of the equipment!"

Corinn waved, then his eyes locked with Fonzo's and he nodded slightly.

"So, we thought we'd really take you somewhere out, and a particular place came to mind."

Fonzo felt his heart beating faster. This was now it. The cue. Oh please baby, don't let us down...

"It's somewhat to the west from here, in the city of Trelissac to be exact, and even more precisely on Gregory Street."

An expectant hum went through the canteen.

"Quite a few of us might've visited it at some point, and even those who haven't been so lucky have sure heard about it. Yeah, I'm talking about 'Chez Maurice'."

Music began to play over the loudspeakers, very quietly at first but picking up volume while Fonzo continued: "So we thought we'd take you there, the classiest place we know of. And even though I can't claim to look half as handsome and distinguished as Maurice himself, hey, I'm doing my best here!"

Bursts of laughter mingled with applause. The image of a stage slowly appeared so that Fonzo seemed to be standing in the middle of it. He took a deep breath and prayed silently.

"And so, ladies and gentlemen, I think at this point I don't need to say much, only two words: Queen Marie."

Corinn closed his eyes when Fonzo stepped aside from the designated stage area and the entire canteen was heard to take a deep breath. The song began to play from the video, the velvety voice of the still invisible star flowing seductively from the loudspeakers. Corinn couldn't bear to look.

A few seconds later he strained his ears. Was there another, or rather the same, voice singing in duet with the video? Yes... yes there was. Exactly as designed. Corinn cracked an eye open and touched the fading slide. At the agreed moment he began to fade the song away, leaving only the accompanying music track on but the voice didn't disappear. It grew stronger and more confident, and then the silvery vision just was there, on top of the stairs. Judging by the collective gasp everybody else saw it at the same time.

A pale hand gently slid along the railing as she walked slowly down the stairs, picking her step with leisurely ease, dress glittering in rhythm with the sway of her hips, singing. She reached the spotlights of the 'stage', granted a lingering smile to the dumbfounded twins in passing, and blew a kiss to Fonzo who sank into a chair. And she sang.

At the end of the song there was a short silence and Corinn gathered enough of his wits to fade the track out. Then the whole canteen erupted into a cacophony of applause, stomping, whistling and hooting that seemed to have no end. The performer herself just stood there, arms spread, smiling. Her eyes shone suspiciously bright, or was it just the makeup?

"My dear people, thank you... thank you!" she purred. "I have to say such a welcome is quite simply overwhelming does this mean you'd like to hear more?"

Corinn flashed her a dazzling grin over the ensuing roar, waited a few moments, and put the next track on.

"It can't be true... but it is!" Arria leaned closer to Osip's ear but couldn't tear his eyes away from the blonde bombshell. "That's no impersonator, Osip. It is Queen Marie herself!"

"That's what I'd say, too," came the stunned reply. "But it can't be."

"I know damn well it can't be!" Arria huffed. "But Osip, if she looks, sings and speaks exactly like Queen Marie, it's got to be her, no matter how impossible!"

"What've those two conjurers done?" Osip murmured, then his eyes fell on something and he froze. He nudged urgently Arria's arm on the table.

"What?"

"The table right next to Corinn..."

Arria forced himself to turn so that he could look at the indicated direction. Scott was sitting there, straight as an arrow, and looking at the performance with large eyes and a worshipping smile on his face. Arria frowned a little and looked at Osip.

"Scott's alone," he whispered. "Where's Lancer?"

"I can think of only one reason why Lancer would leave Scott alone at a time like this," Osip hissed into his ear. "He must have something else to do, something very pressing."

"Such as... singing." Arria swallowed as a dozen things whooshed through his mind at the same time, and then a glimmer right behind Osip made him catch his breath. "Oh my god..."

A slim arm snaked around Osip's neck and a tapered finger with a menacingly long nail lifted his chin upwards. The blonde beauty winked to Arria playfully before concentrating fully on the tall head pilot who was looking at her, speechless.

"I think I'm going to dedicate the next song to... our Commanders," she cooed. "And don't you think 'Two's company' is just the right song for them?"

A few songs later Osip was no more the only man who was practically swooning in his chair after Queen Marie had flirted with them. Especially the Ney-Spaak twins, self-proclaimed number one fans of the star, were totally cross-eyed after the lady herself had actually sat on their table throughout an entire rendition of 'Hand in Hand'.

Finally she was back on the stage and her smile faded.

"It's time for the last song, folks." The voice nearly broke. "It's a piece I haven't sung for over two years. And I dedicate it to all pilots here..."

She paused, eyes locking with Scott's, who smiled tenderly. She took a deep breath. "Especially to a man called Turner. It's called 'Soar Away'."

It had always been one of her best loved songs, but right there, right then, the bittersweet poignancy and sheer beauty of the song were nearly unbearable. Tears ran down the narrow face, and when the last notes fluttered away she could only blow a kiss to everyone and disappear up the stairs. On top of them she still had the presence of mind to turn around and wave, but as soon as the door closed behind her, she kicked the shoes off and ran.

Arria tried to blink his tears away and saw Osip surreptitiously drying his eyes, too. Around them everyone was battling with their emotions, but that certainly didn't prevent them from applauding madly. Fonzo reappeared on the stage, clearing his throat.

"So, now that we're back from Maurice's, it's time for some food and drinks!" he announced. "Everything's on serve-yourself basis. And our Maestro Corinn has promised that the music won't end until the last of you has called it a day and crawled to bed."

"Just a word!" Osip jumped up like a jack-in-a-box. "I think we all want to thank our program team for a surprise that no words are enough to describe, and let them too have some well-deserved fun after all the hard work they've done for this event..."

Lancer stood under a scalding hot shower for a long time, face turned up, eyes closed. When he felt that he simply couldn't take it a moment longer, he turned the heat down until he began to shiver. Gone was the dress, the hairdo, the makeup, the glitter. Gone was Queen Marie, and Lancer stood in the cold shower, teeth chattering.

"Lancer, come now. The party has only begun, so Corinn said. I want to see what it is like. And you promised to teach me how to dance."

Scott stood at the bathroom door, a large towel in his hands. He smiled. Lancer stepped out of the spray and let Scott wrap the towel around him. He looked anxiously into the dark blue eyes.

"Are you angry? Hurt?"

"Why? Because you sang it for him?" Scott hugged him very tight. "No I am not. I think I understand, Lancer, at least a little. You loved him. And without him you would not be here, and I would never have met you."

Lancer closed his eyes and buried his face on Scott's neck. He could feel Scott smiling.

"You must get dressed now, Lancer! Your hair makes me wet!"

The noise of music, conversation and laughter in the canteen made a wonderful combination that he'd want to hear more often, Corinn decided and swept his plate and glass away from the worst crush. He was seated close to the hi-fi so that he could keep an eye on it and periodically reprogram it if necessary, but currently there was very little need for that. The loudspeakers had been carefully tuned to make sure that, after the show, the dance floor would enjoy the best sounds while the rest of the room only had a pleasant background music playing at a volume that well allowed talking.

Fonzo squeezed down next to him and placed his booty on the table, preparing to indulge.

"This is working out even better than I ever dared hope!" he grinned and stuffed a large piece of pastry into his mouth. "I hope Lancer and Scott come soon, or they'll miss too much of the fun."

"I bet Lancer needs a while to unwind," Corinn said thoughtfully. "But don't worry, they'll be here all right. They wouldn't miss this for anything... especially Scott."

"Yeah, this is the first time of just about everything for him!" Fonzo marveled through a mouthful of pastry and salad. "You just wait, before we know the kid's a seasoned party animal!"

"So, are we planning to make this a regular thing then?" Corinn asked conspiratorially. "Of course it depends on the Commanders, too, but..."

"Well in that case I don't think we'll have to fear much opposition." Fonzo looked pointedly towards the Commanders who were sitting by a large round table with half a dozen other people, talking and laughing at something. "Hey, there they are!"

The arrival of a proudly beaming Scott and a still slightly breathless and wet-haired Lancer caused an enormous commotion. Everyone wanted to talk to Lancer at the same time, and finally it was Reed who stomped into the stampede to rescue him. Despite his short stature he managed such intimidating scowls that the two were finally able to settle themselves by a table. Fonzo grinned.

"Enter the white knight!" he declared dramatically. "I think I'll be the good sidekick and go get them something to eat and drink, now that they've found themselves a seat."

He easily plowed himself a route through the throng. Corinn glanced at the hi-fi and stood up. Maybe he'd better take a look at the music...

The mood in the canteen rose as the hour grew late and the supply of drinks diminished. Everyone, including Scott, was at least a bit tipsy, but pleasantly so. Lancer seemed to be keeping close tabs on his inexperienced partner, Arria observed and felt his lips curving into a smile against the glass he was holding.

A touch on his shoulder made him look up into black-brown eyes.

"Do you dance, Commander?"

"Umm... with you, Commander?"

"I can't see anybody else asking at the moment."

Arria nodded, oddly breathless, and followed Osip to the dance floor. Muscular arms wound around his waist and he sensed rather than saw the slightly smug smile.

"Blue suits you. Fabulously." Osip's breath tickled his ear and the arms pulled him a little closer.

"Paying compliments, Commander?" Arria smiled and nearly closed his eyes. "I wonder what you are hoping to gain?"

"Mmm... any guesses?"

"Not many," Arria confessed. "I'm very very puzzled."

"I hope you don't mind, though?" Osip pulled a little farther and looked at him seriously. Arria laughed.

"Does this feel like I do?"

"No," Osip murmured. "Not in the least."

Two pairs of eyes, one very green and the other deep amber, followed the two Commanders. The white-accentuated black figure of Osip was protectively hunched over and around Arria's slim form, and even the last glint of light disappeared from between them. The green-eyed man sighed despondently.

"All right. I lose."

"I told you," Maschani said gleefully. "Come on, pay up!"

Percy shot him a poisonous glance. "Right. I, Percy Lambrakis, hereby relinquish my simulator turns for the next two days to Zdenek Maschani."

Maschani grinned. "Thanks, mate! I knew you'd lose this bet!"

"You'll pay for this, Osip!" Percy grumbled. "I was so sure he'd still go on beating about the bush, that's what he's been doing for so fucking long already..."

"And I told you that if he's not going to do it tonight, he'd never get around doing it!" Maschani finished his drink and got up. "What'll I get for you?"

"Something strong enough to drown the disappointment..."

"No drinks, Percy, but dancing!" Wilson pulled the man on his feet and grinned. "Come on!"

She backed towards the dance floor and Percy grinned.

"Forget about the drinks," he shouted over his shoulder and dove into the crowd.

A couple of hours later, more mellow tunes had definitely triumphed over harder beat. Arria's head was spinning, but alcohol had very little to do with it. He pressed against Osip's towering body, feeling the smooth fabric of the man's jacket under his hands. The arms around him tightened yet again and he smiled at the hardness against his hip.

"May I ask you something?"

Arria couldn't help feeling surprised that Osip's low voice and warm breath on his hair could still increase the tingling all over him. "Go right ahead."

"Your room or mine?"

Arria raised his eyes to give Osip an appraising glance.

"Yours," he said firmly. "It's closer, and besides I seem to remember that you have an extra long bed, which I don't have."

"Right!" Osip began to walk backwards to the door, the bulge of his crotch rubbing enticingly on Arria's stomach. The blond man growled.

"Too slow..."

"Impatient, Commander? Well I never... or are you just trying to tell me that it took me too damn long to tell you how I feel about you?"

"I might have encouraged you a bit, if I'd realized I wasn't only imagining things," Arria admitted ruefully. "But better now than never. Though it sure did take you a while."

Osip pursed his lips and tried to look apologetic. "I'm such a shy guy."

Arria cracked.

The door slid open and closed again with a metallic sigh. For a moment Osip fumbled in vain for the light switch, then abandoned the whole stupid idea and walked Arria to the bed without breaking their liplock. He knew well enough where the bed was, anyway.

They left a trail of clothing in their wake and when Arria's legs hit the bed, Osip took advantage of the situation and pushed him on his back, pulling the last of his clothes off. Panting, Arria looked at the black shadow looming over him and raised a hand to squeeze a broad shoulder. He needed to feel the man to believe this was really happening, that they really were both here on the same bed, that this wasn't just another waking dream.

"How do you want it?" Osip nibbled on his neck. Arria groaned, grabbed two fistfuls of hair and yanked his head up for a searing kiss.

"Any way you like, Commander. Just no dawdling!"

"Any way I like, hmm?" Osip's large mouth drew into a smile and he slid down, between Arria's pale thighs. His fellow commander tried to wrestle him back but in the purely physical department Osip simply had too vast an advantage. "In that case I think I'll make you wait a little longer."

"Osip!" Arria's fingers dug into the duvet when Osip blew playfully on his straining erection.

"Impatient? Well all right..."

Osip's tongue swirled quickly around a small birthmark on Arria's hipbone, tasting the thin layer of sweat that gave the slim body a warm sheen in the dim nightlight. He looked up to catch a glimpse of his blond dream's face and smiled. Arria's eyes narrowed and lips parted in anticipation. Osip's smile broadened.

"I love you," he breathed, bent down and swallowed Arria whole.

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