for driftcompatible

[striker_eureka]

Hercules is the type of man to wear clothing that doesn't quite fall within regulation guidelines — nowhere in the PPDC rulebook does it say that leather boots like his or henleys and heavy canvas vests are within uniform regulations — so seeing him in civvies is no real surprise for most people around the 'dome.

Usually his civvies aren't quite as...suggestive, though. It's nothing overt, but someone as powerfully built as Hercules can wear a burlap sack and make it seem sexy if he tries, so the well-worn jeans that hug his thighs and make his ass look like that of a man twenty years his junior are a little indecent. As is the tight olive-drab tee shirt he's wearing, his dog tags disrupting the way it stretches across his chest. He's taken to wearing Chuck's bomber jacket most days when he needs to leave the 'dome, but since he's making an effort for them to have some semblance of privacy on this outing, he's left it behind and is wearing the old, worn leather jacket he got when he was still in the RAAF.

It could be purely psychological, but dressing in clothes he hasn't really worn since peacetime makes him feel...much more at peace.

Max is off with Tendo, which means he's got nothing to do while he waits for Mako to show up; nothing to do, that is, but run his hand absently over his vintage Waratah motorbike.

Comments

[driftcompatible]

Mako just watches for now, because trying to talk like this is impossible (though she's grateful that he seems to be using both hands to steer now) and and she'd rather take in the sights at the moment, anyway. She hasn't been out like this since she's been in Hong Kong, and she's drinking in the sights and savoring the smells, creating memories that both Raleigh and Hercules will probably have to experience through the Drift at some point.

Eventually she's curious though, and she speaks up, trying to be louder than the whipping wind and roaring engine.

"Where are we going?"

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"I told you," he shouted back, turning his head a little so she might have a chance of hearing him. "We're getting dinner!"

He has no real plan of where to go to get dinner, though, figuring they could just get street food from a cart downtown and wander a little, experience what it was like to live in a busy city instead of a busy military base. Just for a change of scenery.

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Dinner. Okay -- that's and answer, but not what she meant. It seems like it's the best answer that she's going to get though, so instead of trying to keep shouting she just holds on and looks around, laughing quietly to herself as they zoom through the streets.

Men.

[striker_eureka]

He used to be a regular pilot, okay, zooming around and performing twists and turns that would leave others with their stomachs in their mouths is par for the course for Hercules.

Eventually, though, he stops showing off and finds a place to park the bike, even bribes a shopkeeper next door to hold on to their helmets for them — as soon as the woman recognized who they were, she agreed and tried to turn down payment; Hercules wouldn't let her get away with it, though, he insisted — and then they were free to wander the city for as long as they wanted.

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It's kind of cute, the way he's showing off for her, and Mako's hands stop fisting in his shirt and instead lets her palms flatten out against his chest because face it -- it's a nice chest.

When they're able to get off and walk - and her legs wobble, just a little - she's like a kid in a candy store, looking at the sights, smelling the food and sampling wares that are pushed into her hands.

She takes one of his hands eventually - so they aren't separated, of course - and walks down the streets with him, smile wide.

[striker_eureka]

Herc's Japanese is abysmal, but his Mandarin is passable, at least for things like this, haggling with shop keepers and making stilted smalltalk when they want to chat with him, a famous Jaeger pilot who's protected Hong Kong many times before.

He buys her sweets and tiny little dumplings, watches with a fond smile as she looks around in wonderment at all the things there are to see.

Her hand in his has his heart stuttering for a moment, surprise warring with pleasure in his chest.

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Her hand is small and warm in his and it's a nice feeling, fingers laced and squeezing off and on like that. She hasn't held hands like that in a long time, maybe not since she was young and in school and she'd held hands with a boy for five minutes before he'd declared she had cooties and ran off.

She insists on some of the most touristy things to have; little chopsticks and fat, plastic cats with their paws up in the air for luck. She wants noodles and rice and all of the things that make Hong Kong what it is and she tells him that in some ways, it reminds her just a little bit of Japan.

[striker_eureka]

"I thought you'd like it," he says, needing to lean in close to murmur in her ear so she'll be able to hear him over the noise around them.

He indulges her need to try every food she sees, finishing what she doesn't want to or can't, lets her fill his pockets with baubles and souvenirs, obligingly takes her photo when she demands it of him or when a fan gets particularly bold and asks for it themselves.

It's fun. Probably the most fun he's had in weeks outside of a Jaeger. It stands to reason it would be with Mako by his side.

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She tries some good things and some bad things -- some of it she happily consumes and some she turns a little green and passes it off on Herc because sometimes no matter what you think Chinese and Japanese food are not the same.

She drags him to take a picture together, pushing her little camera phone now complete with some kind of silly dangling charm into the hands of a laughing young woman, who is more than happy to snap several pictures of Mako holding his hand, leaning on his shoulder, waving at the camera.

There's a photo booth too, and she makes him do that with her also and she forces him to make funny faces and smile and tip their heads together for the last one.

It's more fun than she thought it would be, but maybe it's because she's with him and they're getting used to helping make one another happy again.

[striker_eureka]

Lucky for Mako, Herc has a stomach of steel, apparently, because for all the times she makes a face and shoves whatever food that's offended her into his hands, he just calmly polishes it off for her, finding nothing particularly offensive about it. He's used to eating all kinds of things, really, and he's learned not to ask what's on his plate. Better off not knowing, most of the time.

He balks a little at the idea of the photobooth, protesting weakly as she drags him into it, his sense of pride warring with the desire to make her smile like that again. Clearly his desire to make her happy wins, though, since he ends up letting her shove him into the little booth. He dutifully makes faces and laughs as the flash goes off, knowing when he's fighting a losing battle.

They hunch together over the little strip after it's been printed, wanting to see their end result.

Mako looks radiant, of course, and it's clear that Herc is mostly humoring her and not doing this of his own volition, but it's a good set of photos, and the in very last one, where their heads are tipped together, Herc's smile as he looks at her out of the corner of his eye is painfully fond and perhaps more than a little telling.

Oh well.

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An arm snakes around his waist as they stare at the little strip; an absent gesture that keeps them close together as the watch in fascination as the picture develops and gets spit out of the booth.

She gives him the top two pictures, deciding that she likes the last one and wants to keep it for herself to put in her room back in the 'dome. They can print more, she tells him, because she's got plenty on her phone that she likes and she's going to have more because she just keeps snapping away at the sights like a tourist. She takes pictures of everything and everyone and she makes Herc take some of her with the locals, their arms around each others waists and laughter as she kneels down to sign a little boy's cast with her name and a quick, frenzied little anime drawing of herself with black hair with blue tips.

[striker_eureka]

He watches her flit from one sight to the next, a wide smile on her face, and feels a deep sense of satisfaction warming his bones. He did something right with this, and he feels pretty damn proud of himself for suggesting something that clearly makes her so happy.

When the little boy turns to Herc, sticking his cast out for the older pilot to sign, he ends up kneeling down and scribbling his own cartoon on it, a tiny little Max looking adoringly up at Mako, his rendition of his dog falling very short of Mako's rendition of herself. Still, the boy seems thrilled by it anyway, and Herc ruffles his hair before he hobbles away, a huge grin on his face.

"We've just made his whole year," he points out idly, watching the little boy disappear into the crowd, his arm settling comfortably around her shoulders.

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Mako's head tips to rest on his shoulder as her eyes follow the boy, smile from the encounter still lingering on her lips. She wishes that she could've gotten a picture of their art but the boy is gone and Mako's phone is crammed into Herc's pocket because hers are too full of candied sweets to hold her own cell phone.

"You think?" She's still watching after him, arm around his waist.

[striker_eureka]

"You kidding?" He chuckles, squeezing her shoulders and turning his head to press a kiss to her hair without thinking. It just feels really natural to let himself be that familiar with her. "If I were his age, I'd be losing my shit over something like this. It'd be all I'd talk about for months."

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A little flush is crawling from her belly to her cheeks and she leans into it, grip tightening a little.

"I would, too."

Because she had. Oh, she had idolized Stacker, especially after she'd first seen him. HE'd been like an angel sent down from heaven, backlit by the sun itself.

[striker_eureka]

"Maybe he'll grow up to be a pilot, just like you."

Herc remembers when Stacker first took Mako in, how baffled his friend had been by the sudden inclusion of a small child into his life, one who practically worshiped him. Hercules remembers telling his friend to enjoy it while it lasts, because she'll grow up while your back is turned and before you know it she'll resent you for some failing you never even knew you had.

Even back then, he was a bit too bitter for his own good.

But luckily, Mako didn't follow in Chuck's footsteps, because she's kind and sweet and more than a little perfect, and Hercules can't think of anyone he'd rather be with right now.

"Want to do something else, or do you think we should head home?"

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"Maybe."

It would be nice, to inspire someone like that. She rolls her shoulders, tightening her grip on him briefly.

"I don't want to go back, just yet. I like this, being out here with you."

[striker_eureka]

Her arm around his waist tightens and he interprets it as her being cold, chafing his hand against her upper arm to try and make her feel better in response.

"Well then, let's find something else for us to do."

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She looks up at him and smiles, eyes brightening when he agrees. She's not that cold, but the gesture is appreciated though she's pulling away to take his hand instead.

The sun has set and the whole city is alight, and she tugs him back into the fray where there's loud music and people and dancing and some sort of parade going on that Mako has to take pictures of. He's got her phone and she frantically roots it out of his jacket pocket just in time to snap a few photos of the enormous dragon that waltzes by, narrowly missing the paper lanterns that hang over head. She hadn't noticed them before but she does now and she grips his hand and points and just as she does, bright red and yellow fireworks explode across the sky, embers sizzling out in their descent.

It's beautiful, it's perfect, she loves it. She turns to him, fireworks loud overhead, the press of people on every side of them, and she smiles.

"Thank you."

[striker_eureka]

Her hand is small in his, delicate but plenty strong as she so helpfully demonstrates by squeezing his fingers and dragging him down the street, into the singing and dancing crowd. Herc has no real idea what's going on, but Mako is apparently having the time of her life, so he's quite happy to go along with it.

Standing perfectly still when she plunges her hand into his pocket to dig out her phone, Herc laughs and smooths a hand over her hair, fixing it where it had fallen out of its perfect shape. The dragon weaving and bobbing in front of them is mesmerizing, red and gold spinning together in a frenzied wash of colors that only intensifies with the scream and crash of fireworks overhead.

He almost misses Mako's smile, still staring up at the sky to see the bursts of light across the night sky, but her voice has him turning his attention back to her and he is so glad he did.

She's beautiful, her eyes shining in the light from the lanterns up above, her cheeks just a little flushed with excitement, her teeth gleaming as she grins. This is the happiest he's ever seen her, probably, and he can't stop himself from leaning down to press his lips to hers, the crush of bodies around them parting as easily as the sea does for a Jaeger, lending an almost private air to the whole experience.

"Thank you," he whispers when he pulls back, stomping down the butterflies that erupted in his stomach. He's, like, ninety percent sure she won't hit him for the kiss. It'll be fine.

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The kiss is almost a surprise. Almost, because she's been wanting it all evening, ever since they took pictures together and shared cotton candy and she'd teased him by licking the sticky, caramelized sugar off the tips of her fingers. He hadn't been able to look away.

He pulls away and she's starstruck but it's not by the fireworks or the crush of people or the chanting that's still going on all around them. It's by him and now she knows that what she feels - what she's felt - is real, it's good, it's right and it's there and not one sided anymore.

"For what?"

Then, deciding it doesn't matter, she moves to kiss him again, fire flickering in her eyes that has nothing to do with the lanterns dotting the area. Something is pressed in between them that stops her from completing her mission, a little girl holding two floating lanterns, waiting to be lit and sent off into the sky.

"For luck," she says, and then she's gone and Mako's standing there with a lantern and staring at Hercules, a brow raised in question.

[striker_eureka]

She's been cruel to him all evening, teasing him with things like the cotton candy, a twinkle in her eye and a smirk on her lips that made it very clear she knew what effect she was having on him. It just wasn't fair. He had to really think about why he couldn't lean in and lick her fingers clean himself. It was a tragedy.

The dazed expression on her face when he pulls back is a good one, he's almost certain, so he doesn't rush to apologize, just watches her as she comes back to herself, a smile on his lips. He wants to kiss her again and again, wants to put that look on her face all the time.

Unfortunately, the world has other ideas, because a little girl comes careening into them, breaking up this lovely moment and pressing a lantern into their hands.

"You ever done one of these before?" he asks, unfolding the lantern and taking a step back so he can turn it on its side and swish it through the air gently to fill up the paper and get it to puff into shape. "Here, hold this," he says, handing it to her and then reaching into his jeans pocket to fish out his lighter so he can set fire to the fuel cell.

"And now we wait for the hot air to lift it up."

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She wants desperately for their lips to meet again, for him to part his beneath hers and let her taste him, revel in him. She wants to touch him and hold him and lay in his arms until the sun comes up.

"No," she says, shaking her head to clear her thoughts as she gently takes it in her hands. She holds it out and up, letting him find his lighter in amongst all of her bits and baubles that she'd had to have, and Mako has to smile fondly at him, lips sliding over her teeth into a broad smile.

"Look, Hercules..." Her eyes move up while she's still holding hers, staring in awe at the lights that now surround her. It's beautiful, majestic, and Mako can't tear her eyes off of the sight.

"Can we stay," she whispers, fingers flexing and threatening to crumple the paper a little bit, "just for tonight?"

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The people around them who've lit their lanterns before them are pushing them off into the sky, dozens, hundreds of flickering lanterns slowly floating up like golden butterflies.

"It's beautiful," he agrees, his eyes straying back to her face as she looks up in awe at the lights slowly lifting up into the night sky.

Finally, the fuel cell ignites and he can slip his lighter away, his hand settling at the base of her spine just because he can set it there. "Stay here?" He looks around, watches the revelry around them, and figures they've got nothing to lose. "If that's what you want, of course. I'm sure we can find a hotel without much difficulty." Whether or not she'd want to share a room is another story, but they can worry about that later.

He can see the lantern trying to lift itself out of her hands now, and he reaches around her to cover her hands with his own. "You're supposed to make a wish," he murmurs, his lips close to her ear with the way he's standing behind her. "And then give the lantern a little push into the air and watch it take your wish up to the stars."

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With the promise that they can stay, Mako's eyes flick back over to him, a hungry but incredibly happy expression on her face that's warmed by the flickering light of a thousand lanterns floating in the sky.

"A wish," she whispers, eyes briefly closing as she contemplates that. There's so many things that she could wish for - things that won't come true, can't come true, things that it'd be useless to waste a wish on.

So she finds something else to focus on - something new, something promising, something warm and perfect and just right, and then, her hands under his, she pushes it up into the air with a quiet little sigh.