The Swan bent over to examine the wiring underneath her station on the God Phoenix.

"I'll wring that Swallow's neck!" she grumbled. "What was he thinking? Bringing aboard some 'harmless' spiders? Of course they would turn out to be Galactor mecha creatures designed to chew up our systems..."

The Swallow of whom she spoke was nowhere in sight. Sensing his big sister's anger, he had judiciously decided to assist the Owl in reprogramming the propulsion systems from the engine core of the God Phoenix.

"Nice view, isn't it?" the Condor smirked as he regarded the Swan's white underwear thrusting up into the air.

The Eagle choked, captivated by the sight, yet at the same time utterly embarrassed at being caught doing so by his second-in-command.

"That begs for a Condor Special." Joe grinned, moving toward Jun.

She was kneeling now, with her head beneath the station, and she appeared to be trying to remove more panels to further inspect the extent of the damage, while still cursing under her breath.

"I've got just what you need, Jun," he said in a deep whisper and he lowered himself down and slid under the station, so that he was stretched out beside her, propped on one elbow. As she turned to look at him, he removed his gun from his belt, adding an attachment to one end.

"The right tool for the job," he smirked, handing it to her. Her eyes met his as she took his gun in her hands. She was ready to throttle Jinpei, and was angrily contemplating all the tedious repair work she was going to have to do, but the way Joe was looking at her... she couldn't help but smile in return. She had a lot of work ahead of her, but maybe she could find a way to enjoy it.

"I agree," she purred, "Perfect for screwing."

"If you want, I can help you put it in the right spot." the Condor grinned. "I have a knack for this kind of thing."

"So I've heard." Jun's eyes raked Joe's muscular frame, and she suddenly realized that his body was pressing itself against the length of hers.

"I suppose I could let you do it." she sighed. "But there's only one problem..."

"What's that?" he asked mischievously. She leaned closer, getting her mouth as close to his ear as their helmets would allow before she whispered huskily.

"I don't want to end up dead."

For a fleeting second, Joe's mouth tightened, but he recovered smoothly.

"Afraid? That's not the Jun I know."

"I know your track record with women. How many-"

"Practice makes perfect, they say."

"So now you're perfect, are you?"

"You'd like to find out, wouldn't you?"

She looked away, emitting a delicate whiff of contempt.

"Can't fool me, Jun. You're curious; you can admit it to me."

She looked at Joe again, but more searchingly this time. He could be so aggravating, but he was perceptive. She was curious, and had been for some time.

"There's still the little problem of the whole 'dead' thing, though."

"A man's luck has to change some time. I think you're the perfect woman to help me with that."

His chin rose a little and his eyes gleamed. Damn him, he was daring her!

From across the bridge, legs encased in bright blue boots were heading their way, legs belonging to an Eagle who was getting very tired of watching them lying side by side and speaking too quietly for him to hear.

"Well? What's your assessment of the damage, G3?"

Joe's fingers briefly grazed the soft skin of her inner thigh, before he pulled himself away from her.

"Tell him you can't possibly complete the repairs properly today," Joe was whispering, "Tell him we have to stay overnight here at the Crescent Base."

"The damage is extensive." Jun admitted, pulling herself up to a stand. "I don't know how long it will take to complete repairs. But if I keep working on it through the night..."

"Don't do that, Jun." Ken shook his head. "You've been exhausting yourself the entire day. We all have. Just write out some instructions for the technicians so they can continue working overnight."

"Are you sure?" Jun asked, looking up at Ken.

The Eagle was taken aback by the expression on the Swan's face. Her eyes were searching his, seeking an answer to a more significant question than the one she had voiced. The problem lay in that he didn't know what the true query was.

He shook his head, attempting to clear it. Was this just another one of Jun's mind games? She had been pursuing him for so long, but of late she had dropped off in that regard. He had sighed with relief. Ken had never wanted to hurt her feelings, but he just wasn't able to be with her, as long as he was in command of the Science Ninja Team.

Not that he didn't want to be with Jun... she was everything he could desire in a woman, and she understood his secret life better than anyone else ever could. Yet the Eagle didn't trust himself to be involved with the Swan personally, while at the same time remaining completely impartial when they were on duty.

He decided to answer the question as she had asked it. One thing was for sure: Ken didn't understand the games women played, and if Jun wasn't going to be up front about... whatever it was... he wasn't about to start a guessing game. He would just take her at face value.

"Yes, I'm sure." he said firmly. "You need some rest, Jun. Write out those instructions, and then retire to your quarters here on base for some rest. You can check out the status of the repairs in the morning."

Jun's mouth fell open, and she nodded slowly.

"If that's what you want, Ken."

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