Prompt #300 - "Author's choice"
Title: Bettering
Author: listyfox
Characters: The five pilots, no pairings
Rating: Technically G, but it depends a little on your imagination
Word Count: 554
Warnings: For a very old joke.
Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Gundam Wing or the pilots. This is for fun.
Once again, random silliness. I don't even know how this came to me, but it has indeed been languishing on my hard drive. Rightly so, perhaps.
Adjusting to civilian life is never easy for any soldier, but for the five soldiers who flew the gundams, this was doubly the case. Already veterans at the age where most teens were applying to college, they had to stop and figure out what exactly they wanted to do with their lives, and how best to "better themselves." That's the term Wufei used.
Heero went back to school. It was a good cover, and he actually did enjoy learning. He took a little bit of everything, excelling at the technical and struggling through the creative. He seemed content to just sort of sample at the moment, confident that eventually something would catch his fancy.
Duo didn't take much to schooling. He preferred the hands-on approach and apprenticed under some of the top Sweepers, including Howard, learning the ins and outs of the salvager operation. There was already speculation that one day he would be running the whole show.
Trowa, of course, stayed at the circus, and chose to self-educate through reading. His e-reader was always stuffed with books of every sort; he basically challenged himself to get through all the greatest classics. Of course, this was between training and improving his acts. It seemed he had a new idea every time the other pilots saw him.
Quatre had his father's business, and took both correspondence courses and even had a few tutors to help him learn business and administration. So when he wasn't working he was learning how to work, and was definitely the busiest off all of them.
Wufei decided to tackle some liberal arts, including painting and sculpture.
Duo squinted a bit, stepping back, then moving forward. "Well," he said finally.
"Well what?" Wufei snapped.
Duo made an inarticulate gesture. "It's...um..."
"Amazing," Quatre chimed in suddenly. "You really sculpted this?"
"I said I did. Why would I lie?"
Trowa rubbed his chin.
"It has an oriental flare," said Heero. "Very...bold."
"Bold is a good word," said Duo. "I'll go with bold."
"I can't believe you made this," Quatre gushed. "Are you going to display it somewhere?"
"I hadn't considered what to do with it. It's my final project for my class on abstract and impressionist sculpture."
"Just amazing."
Wufei eyed his fellow pilots with a hint of suspicion. "No one has yet used a truly complimentary adjective. I am beginning to suspect that you do not like it."
"We didn't say that!" cried Quatre.
"Ah...er...uh..." said Duo, gesturing vaguely towards it.
"I'm not a critic," said Heero. "I honestly don't know what makes something like this good."
Trowa continued to rub his chin, tilting his head to the left.
"I asked what you thought, not what a critic would say."
"I think it's amazing," Quatre said warmly. "Really. You're obviously very talented."
"Obviously," said Duo.
"I know I couldn't do that," said Heero. "I'm impressed."
"So am I. Totally impressed," said Duo.
"Barton?"
"I think that it's everything they've said and more," said Trowa finally. "I never would have thought you of all people could be so... explicit."
"Explicit?" asked Wufei.
They all stared at Trowa, then turned to stare at the sculpture, tilting their heads to the left as Trowa had.
"Ah!" said Quatre, turning red.
"Hm," said Heero.
"Ha!" said Duo.
"Oh," said Wufei.
Next semester, he took technical drawing.
Author: listyfox
Characters: The five pilots, no pairings
Rating: Technically G, but it depends a little on your imagination
Word Count: 554
Warnings: For a very old joke.
Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Gundam Wing or the pilots. This is for fun.
Once again, random silliness. I don't even know how this came to me, but it has indeed been languishing on my hard drive. Rightly so, perhaps.
Adjusting to civilian life is never easy for any soldier, but for the five soldiers who flew the gundams, this was doubly the case. Already veterans at the age where most teens were applying to college, they had to stop and figure out what exactly they wanted to do with their lives, and how best to "better themselves." That's the term Wufei used.
Heero went back to school. It was a good cover, and he actually did enjoy learning. He took a little bit of everything, excelling at the technical and struggling through the creative. He seemed content to just sort of sample at the moment, confident that eventually something would catch his fancy.
Duo didn't take much to schooling. He preferred the hands-on approach and apprenticed under some of the top Sweepers, including Howard, learning the ins and outs of the salvager operation. There was already speculation that one day he would be running the whole show.
Trowa, of course, stayed at the circus, and chose to self-educate through reading. His e-reader was always stuffed with books of every sort; he basically challenged himself to get through all the greatest classics. Of course, this was between training and improving his acts. It seemed he had a new idea every time the other pilots saw him.
Quatre had his father's business, and took both correspondence courses and even had a few tutors to help him learn business and administration. So when he wasn't working he was learning how to work, and was definitely the busiest off all of them.
Wufei decided to tackle some liberal arts, including painting and sculpture.
Duo squinted a bit, stepping back, then moving forward. "Well," he said finally.
"Well what?" Wufei snapped.
Duo made an inarticulate gesture. "It's...um..."
"Amazing," Quatre chimed in suddenly. "You really sculpted this?"
"I said I did. Why would I lie?"
Trowa rubbed his chin.
"It has an oriental flare," said Heero. "Very...bold."
"Bold is a good word," said Duo. "I'll go with bold."
"I can't believe you made this," Quatre gushed. "Are you going to display it somewhere?"
"I hadn't considered what to do with it. It's my final project for my class on abstract and impressionist sculpture."
"Just amazing."
Wufei eyed his fellow pilots with a hint of suspicion. "No one has yet used a truly complimentary adjective. I am beginning to suspect that you do not like it."
"We didn't say that!" cried Quatre.
"Ah...er...uh..." said Duo, gesturing vaguely towards it.
"I'm not a critic," said Heero. "I honestly don't know what makes something like this good."
Trowa continued to rub his chin, tilting his head to the left.
"I asked what you thought, not what a critic would say."
"I think it's amazing," Quatre said warmly. "Really. You're obviously very talented."
"Obviously," said Duo.
"I know I couldn't do that," said Heero. "I'm impressed."
"So am I. Totally impressed," said Duo.
"Barton?"
"I think that it's everything they've said and more," said Trowa finally. "I never would have thought you of all people could be so... explicit."
"Explicit?" asked Wufei.
They all stared at Trowa, then turned to stare at the sculpture, tilting their heads to the left as Trowa had.
"Ah!" said Quatre, turning red.
"Hm," said Heero.
"Ha!" said Duo.
"Oh," said Wufei.
Next semester, he took technical drawing.