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Amuro Ray still isn’t sure exactly what possessed him to give into join Char in space. Seven years spent with his wings clipped, resigned to fade away into obscurity, and yet the Federation couldn’t quite stomp out the remaining embers in his heart. Being called out by Katz stoked those embers back to life, but what sparked the flame to begin burning as it once had was meeting once again with his old rival.
He thought that he’d never return to space again. Too many literal ghosts up there, too many bitter memories. But then, he thought that Char Aznable would never do something as selfless as giving up his Quattro persona, his chance at freedom to live as nothing more than a pilot, for the sake of the AEUG’s mission.
They’d shared a whiskey, talked like old comrades rather than enemies. And then…Amuro couldn’t even blame it on the alcohol. Maybe it was the celebratory atmosphere, the feeling of hope for real change - whatever it was, it led to the two men in bed together, and a morning after conversation Amuro couldn’t avoid any longer.
And so, assured that Karaba was in safe hands with Hayato and his pilots, on top of the fact the real fight was now in space, Amuro joined the Argama’s crew.
In some ways it’s nostalgic. Being under Captain Bright’s command again helped to ease most of his concerns - rocky as their working relationship was at the start, Amuro has come to trust Bright wholeheartedly.
As for the issue of literal ghosts in the dark expanse of space: Lalah has mercifully held off on haunting his dreams, for now. Yet, that very fact also makes him nervous.
To combat those nerves, Amuro’s been making himself busy. Though he may be known as a pilot, he’s a mechanic at heart; tinkering away at the suits on board the Argama and performing maintenance is practically self-soothing.
He’s working on tuning up the Hyaku Shiki (it would be just like Char to request the flashiest possible suit, as if becoming a 20-metre tall bright gold target was some kind of flex), when he feels a tug on the cord he’s attached to.
Amuro is pulled down, eye-to-sunglasses level by the blond menace whose fault it is he’s both here and trying to make sure his flashbang of a suit doesn’t get shot to oblivion.
“Hey, hotshot. Hope you’re treating the Hyaku Shiki with the tenderness she deserves” Char smirks, and Amuro wants to wipe it off his face. With a kiss or a punch, he’s not picky.
The taller man has been in far too good of a mood ever since Amuro decided he’d return to space aboard the same ship as him.
“I’ve been a perfect gentleman to her, I’ll have you know. I’m not the one who overclocks his suits like he’s late to his own deathwish. Anyway, speaking of - I kicked her acceleration up a notch. Thank me by not getting her blown up”
“Understood, Captain” Char says, still with that damned smirk, and gives Amuro a chaste kiss on the lips.
Somehow, it would be less embarrassing if he just pulled Amuro’s pants down and blew him in the hangar.
“I was a captain with Karaba,” Amuro says, cheeks burning “not with the AEUG”
To be honest, not even he’s sure what his rank is meant to be around here. One thing just led to another after Dakar and now he’s back in space like none of his nightmares and trauma over it ever mattered.
That said, Char does pause to consider this. Which means even as second (or now technically first?) in command, he hadn’t thought about what rank Amuro was to fill, assuming he agreed to go back to space. Did he not plan that far ahead?
It’s in this pause that Kamille conveniently arrives, and Amuro takes the chance to snatch Char’s ridiculous sunglasses as revenge. He hauls himself back up before Char can protest, caught between pulling Amuro back and attending to whatever matter his protégé has for him.
He’ll give the glasses back. Eventually.
Though he might not get the chance to show it often, Amuro does appreciate Kamille. He’s a good kid, if a touch too fiery, and handling things…well enough, all things considered. What he didn’t expect was Kamille to have recovered Amuro’s old Haro model, which is well past due an upgrade.
Having given up on sleeping after tossing and turning in his new quarters, Amuro took the talkative green orb bouncing around the ship as it pleased and opened it up for inspection in the living area.
Amuro feels Char’s presence before he arrives in and pulls up a chair right next to him. The more annoying thing is that he’s wearing an identical pair of sunglasses to the ones Amuro stole earlier. Of course he’d have spares.
“Thought I’d find you here. Can’t sleep?” Char asks, though Amuro could ask him the same - they’d both been busy with one thing or another all day. Well, what passes for a day on a space warship.
“Going to suggest a way to help?” Amuro asks, not looking away from his task at hand.
Char laughs, picking up on the innuendo. “Well, if you insist I can be persuaded”
He slides closer to Amuro, resting his head on his shoulder. Amuro doesn’t shrug him off.
Instead, he spares him a backwards glance. Though Char’s eyes are practically blacked out by his sunglasses, through their newtype connection he can sense the exhaustion deep in the Red Comet’s bones.
“Captain Bright’s been working you like a dog, if you’re tired enough even I can feel it”
“No rest for the wicked, as the saying goes” Char says, though he makes himself comfortable on Amuro’s shoulder.
“You think you’re wicked?”
Amuro doesn’t need to see Char’s eyes to know they widened at that. The blond opens his mouth to speak, before closing it again.
What an aggravating man Char Aznable can be.
Amuro carries on his tinkering in silence, but somehow it’s not awkward. It’s more like a blanket covering them both, heavy but comforting in its weight.
The silence stretches on, and it’s clear that sleep had finally claimed the Red Comet as its victim. The Amuro Ray of seven years ago would have thought Char a man incapable of rest, and yet here he is, peaceful as a cat curled up in its owner’s lap.
The door to the living area opens and Kamille arrives, only to stop in his tracks at such a scene. Slowly, as not to jostle the man on his shoulder too much, Amuro raises a finger to his lips in a shush motion.
The young pilot didn’t need to be told twice. He leaves with a quick bow - whatever he came in for must not be that important. That, or he didn’t want to see his mentor’s reaction to being woken up in such a state of vulnerability.
Haro’s upgrades are all ready to go, but to test them Amuro will have to turn it back on. He rests his chin on the little green robot - just a few more minutes, and he’ll wake Char himself.
Char Aznable wakes with a crick in his neck and yet feeling more rested than he had been in months. The man whose shoulder he had made a pillow out of is out like a light, head kept precariously in place by the Haro he’d been working on.
Char can’t help but smile to himself - Amuro is surprisingly adorable when he’s asleep. Of course, if Amuro heard him say as much, he’d probably get a solid punch in return. His jaw hurts just thinking about it.
Char wants to take the time to bask in this peace, but he’s likely slept longer than intended and has plenty of work to get back to. If anything, he wonders why Kamille hasn’t been looking for him.
Amuro’s warmth is proving difficult to leave, however.
Well…just a little while longer won’t hurt, right?