Surprise, Surprise! (Natalie)

[William Blake]

Natalie had taken her father's death hard. It was understandable. He was the man who'd been instrumental in teaching her all about mechanics and helping her find her passion in life. If he hadn't let her work on the cars in his garage, then Natalie probably would have never become an engineer, and Will never would have met her. He had a lot to thank the man for, and he would never get the chance.

Right now though, he was more concerned about Natalie's state of being. Most mornings she traipsed into engineering with red eyes, tired and uncommunicative. Her light and bubbly self had recoiled somewhere inside her and the hurt and the pain of her father's death was ruling her life. He'd done the best he could to try and cheer her up, keep her busy, but it was proving to be difficult. He'd stand by her for as long as it took her to get through it though, he knew that for certain.

Delta Prime was a regular stop-off on their travels, and Will had decided to take the chance to sort out something off the ship, something that would help take Natalie's mind off everything. He'd sent her a mysterious message telling her to meet him in the hangar bay, which was where he was waiting now. She was a couple of minutes late, but he wasn't too worried for the moment. If she was more than ten or fifteen minutes late, he'd hunt her down and see what was up.

Eventually, she walked through the door, and as she got closer, he saw that she had a little more colour in her cheeks, and she didn't look as tired as usual. That was a good sign. "Hey beautiful," he said, reaching out a hand to her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders comfortingly as he kissed her on the head, "ready for this surprise?"

[Natalie Blake]

Normally Natalie wasn't much of one for surprises, but when Will left her a message demanding that she meet him on Delta Prime the next time they landed there, she didn't argue. Spending some time with him away from the rest of the crew, where she could just relax for a bit and get her mind off things, would be a pleasant change after the last few weeks.

She was pretty sure that if she'd been dragged through Hell she would have come out better than she did after her father's death. Ever since she'd gotten the news she'd more or less curled in on herself, tucking into a safe, warm shell and refusing to come out for anything.

When she was around others she was blank and emotionless and she knew it, but it was better than when she was alone. When she was alone, she'd break down and try to cry until the pain went away. It never did. But today she was feeling a fair bit better, and so the thought of standing Will up, while it crossed her mind, fled almost instantly.

His message had said to wear something she wouldn't care if it got ruined, and so she pulled on a grease-stained pair of jeans and an old hoodie that had been hiding in the back on her closet. Forcing herself to think of happier things, like what this surprise might be, she managed to get some of her usual liveliness back as she made her way out to meet the man she loved.

Despite the fact that she was a few minutes late, Will greeted Natalie brightly, and she managed an actual, albeit small, smile when he kissed her head. "Engineer Natalie, reporting for duty, sir," she joked, prodding his ribs gently so he'd let her go. She then took his hand, weaving her fingers through his and trying to pull of another smile when she looked up at him. "So what is this surprise, anyway? Or are you going to amp up the suspense and make me wait?"

[William Blake]

Will was glad that Natalie seemed to be a little more like herself, or was at least acting like it for his sake. He missed her. She was usually the happy one, the shining light who was amazing and made him feel loved. But now, she needed him, and he was determined to be there for someone who wasn't six years old and had a crush on him.

He chuckled a little when she said she was reporting for duty, and flinched away, "I could reprimand you for that," he said teasingly, squeezing her hand as she took his, "but I'll let you off, because I'm amazing, and I love you." He grinned, doing his best to keep the mood light and fun. "And for your information, yes, I will continue to be chirpy for the rest of the day. And no, there is no way to make me stop."

Keeping a hold of her hand, he led her off the ship, addressing her questions. "Amp up the suspense, I suppose I could do that," he said, smiling across at her, "I'm going to pretend that the place isn't less than five minutes away and at least attempt to make this more exciting." He paused, "oh no, wait, too late, we're already here."

Will pulled her to his side and pointed up at the sign which said 'paintballing' in big letters. It was a pretty crazy idea, if he was honest, but there was nothing like running round an inflatable obstacle course throwing balls of paint at one another. "One hour, as many paint balls as you want, we've got the whole course to ourselves," he informed her, letting go of her hand as he backed towards the entrance.

"What do you say Miss Fairholm? Are you ready to have some fun?"

[Natalie Blake]

At Will's crack at reprimanding her for poking him, Natalie scoffed and threw him a dubious look. When he continued, her lips curled up again and she gave a little nod. "That sounds about right," she teased, pushing up on her toes to plant a quick kiss on his cheek. "And for the record, I love you, too."

Glad to have Will's hand in hers, Natalie worked to keep a small smile on her face and let him bridge the distance between the ship and their mystery location with chatter. He seemed to be trying his hardest to cheer her up, and she truly appreciated it. She could understand why the rest of the crew felt awkward around her--save for Katy, who rarely felt awkward around anyone under any circumstances--but it was a testament to what a great guy he was that Will was trying to be there for her.

When they came to a stop, she looked up to where he was pointing and barely repressed a bark of laughter. "Paint-ball?" she laughed, her amused and slightly incredulous expression the most emotion she'd shown in a while. "You've actually paid for an hour of getting shot at?" But all the same, she chuckled again and followed him into the building without hesitation. This would be interesting, to say the least.

[William Blake]

Will grinned as she said she loved him too. There had been a serious lack of love in his life for a long, long time, so hearing those words leave Natalie's lips made him feel so elated every time she said it. But, he wasn't going to be over cheery, that had the risk of backfiring and sending Natalie in the complete opposite direction on the mood scale. Cheeky, cheeky would be good. "I know," he said, poking his tongue out at her.

"Exactly," he said, "it made you laugh already, so there's money well spent." She seemed to be warming up to the idea pretty quickly, obviously he'd made the right decision in bringing her here. He used to love doing this with the guys at University, but, of course, they'd been a little more competitive back then. They used to religiously keep score over all the games in a season, and whoever won got several free rounds of drinks and their name at the top of the leader board in the dorm.

Walking over to the desk, Will smiled at the guy there, "we should be down under Blake, I booked the place out for an hour." The guy nodded, getting Will to sign the guest book before handing both of them all the gear they would need, shoulder pads, gloves, a helmet, etc. Will got all his gear on - he looked ridiculous, but didn't really give a damn - then turned to Natalie who still had her helmet to go. He seized it from the counter top and placed it gently on her head, fixing the clasp under her chin, before pulling the strap firm so the helmet wouldn't fall off her head. "Ready, darling?" he said, planting a quick kiss on her nose as he reached over to grab her gun.

[Natalie Blake]

Natalie snorted when Will said "I know", covering her mouth with her fist and pretending to cough while very obviously saying, "Star Wars junkie." Not that she could say much. After all, she was the one who'd caught the reference--not that he'd been making one, but she'd picked up on it anyway. Which, in a way, meant that she was the Star Wars junkie. But then again, she'd always been a vintage kind of girl.

When he confirmed that he'd already paid for it, she chortled and the first full smile she'd worn in weeks graced her face. "Prepare to eat paint, Blake," she giggled, knowing full-well that he'd probably win but deciding she'd try to make him think otherwise. She'd never played before, so if he actually did end up with paint in his mouth, it would more likely be more by accident than by design.

After checking in, they had to deck themselves out in the proper attire. By the time Natalie had most of it equipped, she felt like something that had crawled out of the Black Lagoon, which only made her laugh again. Gods, it felt good to laugh again. She grinned at the sight of Will, wrinkling her nose as he put her helmet on for her and only relaxing it when he placed a quick kiss on it.

"Ready as I'll ever be," she answered, taking the gun he offered her. "Say, what'll be the prize at the end of this little event?" With a snort she added, "You didn't have a strip-tease in mind, did you?"

[William Blake]

Will smirked over at Natalie, rubbing her on the head, "I'm the Star Wars junkie, huh?" teasing her a bit. It had been a completely unintentional reference, but it had worked all the same. It was amazing to think that after all these years, people still loved watching those ridiculously outdated films. The SFX were appalling considering that people did actually fly around in space ships now, but it still sparked the imaginations of children who dared to dream about that sort of thing, and also kids who purely loved to mock it.

There it was, a real smile. It made Will grin. The grin faded into a mock shocked face as she told him to eat paint. "Don't think I'm going to go easy on you Fairholm," he said, "in this game it's all or nothing. My pride is at stake." He was being ridiculous but it was fun. He was tapping into that playful side that he'd had before he'd buried himself in the world of work. It still lingered around, but most of the time he was so stressed, it didn't show. It was definitely coming out to play now though, all for Natalie's benefit.

"The prize?" Will hadn't even thought about that. The main objective had to been to get Natalie laughing again, but now she was demanding a prize. Deary me, what had he started? "A strip-tease?" he let out a bark of laughter, "well, my dear, if you beat me, which you won't, then you can have anything you want. As for if I win," he said, "what are you willing to offer me, hmm?" This was going to be amusing at any rate.

[Natalie Blake]

"Hey, at least you're confirming that you understood the reference too," Natalie pointed out playfully, her amusement poorly disguised by the scowl she put on when Will's hand found it's way to the top of her head. Then it was his turn to pull a false expression, throwing out a teasing threat in response to her own.

"I see. Well, we wouldn't want your pride getting bruised, now would we?" she smirked, shoving his shoulder lightly, "I guess I might just have to let you win, if that's the case." At her question of a prize, Will looked a little stupefied for a moment. Huh, apparently he hadn't anything planned beyond having fun. That was actually really sweet of him.

But, like any competitive person, he took her up on the idea, saying that if she won he'd give her whatever she wanted, and she grinned deviously. "All right then, if I win, which you're so sure I won't, then we have to make good on that stick-flailing session we missed. Or, if that doesn't work for you, I'm also good with just being treated to a nice, expensive dinner."

Of course, then he asked what she'd be willing to give him if he won. She considered it for a moment, then shrugged and gave him an coquettish smile. "Up to you, handsome," she said innocently, though the smile didn't leave her face. "With all this talk, I'm expecting you to win. If you do, your prize should be worthwhile. I'll let you think on it. Now, are we going to head in or what?"

[William Blake]

"Oh, but that's no fun," Will said when she said that she'd have to let him win because she didn't want to wound his pride, "give it your best shot," he told her, "then it'll make the victory even sweeter," he grinned, nudging her in return. He was a man, of course he was going to be competitive, it was his nature. Plus, he'd been involved in all sorts of sports through school and University, having healthy competition was good for dealing with his determination and aggression. He wouldn't be aggressive with Natalie though, never.

Will laughed out loud when she mentioned the stick-flailing session. "You just want me to take my clothes off, don't you?" he said, "push me into a bar in my underwear and see who takes the bait." He pulled off a lot of crazy pranks and stuff all throughout his years in education, but even that would take him to a new level of nutty. "Or dinner, dinner would definitely work." He wasn't exactly short of cash, and would save innocent... or maybe not so innocent women being beaten by Natalie. As funny as that would be to see.

"Ooh, handsome," he said, "I approve of this new name," he smirked, picking up his own paint gun. "I will definitely be thinking on it," he assured her, gesturing with his hand towards the entrance, "ladies first. First to five hits wins. And you better be ready to run."

Once they were through the entrance, a siren went off, and Will immediately darted away behind one of the large inflatable structures before Natalie had a chance to react. He should be able to get his first couple of hits in no problem before she wisened to his game. Skulking low he crouched down, spying movement to his left. He fired, getting an orange paintball right in her side, then rolled away, snickering.

[Natalie Blake]

"Enough talk, hot-shot," Natalie laughed, "Why don't you put your money where your mouth is and show me what you've got!" He'd no doubt see what she had in about five seconds--that was about how long it would take for him to get a shot in. At her mention of the stick-flailing session, Will laughed, and the sound make her grin a little. His next comment made her snort.

"I've seen you in trunks before, underwear wouldn't be that big of a stretch," she pointed out with a giggle, batting her eyelashes immaculately, though a devious smirk was quick to follow. "Ha, if I pushed you into a bar I'd have to pull out the stick simply to pry you out from under a pile of women. I believe I told you before, I don't share well."

Will turned to the other option then, and Natalie smiled. "Dinner it is then. So, I win, you treat me to dinner. You win, and your prize is whatever you manage to come up with." Sounded fair enough to her. Apparently having called him "handsome" had been a good thing--or at least, he claimed to like it. Though he smirked, which suggested that he was poking fun at her for having used an endearment, and she unleashed a playful scowl on him.

He said that he would think on what he wanted his prize to be if--or as he so quaintly seemed to be trying to put it without out-right saying it, when--he won before ushering her into the room. It was filled with obstacles, all splattered with dozens of different colours from miss-fires. They no doubt could have cleaned it, what with todays technology, but it let off a more authentic feel this way.

Natalie only had a second to comprehend what Will had said before a loud siren wailed, echoing off the walls, and he'd suddenly disappeared. She shook her head and chuckled under her breath, and made a break for the first bit of cover she could find. Just as she was about to dive behind the piece of wall a shot collided with her side, splattering orange paint over her sweater.

"Oh, it's on now, Blake!" she called laughingly, quickly ducking behind the wall and stalking along in hastily before peering around the other side. She spied him crouching behind a large block, and sneakily positioned her gun to fire a shot at his shoulder, only just managing to hold off on beaming in success as the blue paint hit its target.

[William Blake]

”Of course not,” he said, about her seeing him in his underwear, ”but I wouldn’t be taking a dip in the water with them on. Apparently, you’d much prefer me to dive head first into a pile of women. I don’t think I’d even make it out alive! And with you wielding that stick, I’d be more concerned about you harming me than them.” He smirked at her, shaking his head a little. It was such a crazy idea. If he’d still been in college, and very drunk, he probably would have done it.

”I’ll be thinking,” he said, ”with a mind like mine, I’m sure I can come up with something good.” He grinned at her before ducking away and getting his first shot in. He heard her shout her threat, and he just laughed silently, making sure to keep himself hidden. If he had his way, she would be easy pickings, and then he could suggest whatever he wanted as his prize. Maybe they could do something completely outrageous, something fun.

His thoughts were interrupted when blue paint splattered off his shoulder onto his cheek. ”Curses!” he wailed dramatically, before spinning away so she couldn’t hit him again, running and ducking under a small crevice under one of the obstacles. He was obscured from view, but could see everything that was going on in this section of the course; the perfect view point.

He only had to wait a couple of minutes before Natalie tried to make her move. He fired off a couple of shots, one hitting her leg, the other her arm, before crawling out from under the obstacle and taking cover, chuckling to himself. Three hits in already, this was a piece of pie, it really was.

[Natalie Blake]

Thankfully, Will had blessed with quick thinking. If he hadn't, he wouldn't have been able to think up anything for his prize in the short amount of time it was going to take him to win. Natalie had gotten a shot in, sure, but so had he, and when she tried to dash for cover in a different location he got two more in. Three to one, and they weren't even thirty seconds into the game.

With a burst of laughter, Natalie ducked behind an obstacle and examined the paint splattered across her arm and leg. He had good aim, better than she'd thought. Then again, he'd clearly done this before--the speed in which he'd suited up and the way he knew how to move around the obstacle-laden room without her seeing or hearing him was testament to that.

If she wanted to win, she had to get four more shots in; but that was assuming Will didn't get the two he needed in before then, and that she wanted to win. In truth, she'd much rather he did--even if only so she could see what crazy idea he'd come up with for a prize. After all, they could go for dinner anytime.

And so she waited, knowing he'd come to find her if she didn't reveal herself after a few minutes. Time to see who the quicker draw was.

[William Blake]

It seemed Natalie was trying to draw him out with her silence, and it was working. She knew him too well to know that he wouldn’t just let her hang around and do nothing, he would lure her out or hunt her down, whichever he thought would give him the tactical advantage. Other guys didn’t think about stuff like this, they just went for each other hell for leather, Natalie was clever though, very clever.

Silently, he moved into a better viewing position and tried to locate where she was hiding. She was being as quiet as a mouse, had been for over five minutes now, and he was getting tired of playing the waiting game.

Cautiously, he began searching for her, careful to keep his back to the obstacles at all times, his finger on the trigger. Eventually, he spied her blonde hair and made a move, running as fast as he could while firing. Several of his shots missed, splattering against the inflatable instead, but one hit. He dived behind another obstacle and checked the damage. She’d got another two shots in of her own. One on his arse. That made him laugh.

Now it was four shots to three, one more and it was all over.

[Natalie Blake]

Natalie didn't have to wait long for her plan to be thrown into action. She could hear movement, but she couldn't quite pinpoint it's origin, which meant she wasn't sure where to aim. But she wasn't going to give up this attempt. Keeping entirely silent, she waited. And waited. After a couple of minutes, she wondered if maybe Will were trying to do the same. If that were the case, there was a chance the game would never end.

But finally, she heard movement again, and knew that he'd given up on her revealing herself. Her lips curled into a smile, and she waited, her paint-ball gun at the ready. Finally he sprang from his cover, racing passed. His shots were generally willy-nilly, but one caught her thigh. Scowling playfully, she leaned around and fired two after him. One caught his back, and the other his ass. She snorted before ducking behind cover again.

Will only needed one more shot to win, but she only needed two. Perhaps her winning was actually possible? Not that it mattered, either way. Darting quietly across a small expanse of open space, Natalie hid behind an obstacle that she hoped would give her a more strategic position over wherever it was Will had decided to run off to. Which, as a point of fact, was something she wasn't too sure about. Where had he gotten to?

[William Blake]

Will could feel the tension now, despite the slight break with her rather amusing shot to his buttock cheek. He was so close to ending this match, and he still didn't know what he wanted as his prize. He could think of many things, all fairly standard and not very interesting; none of which included the stick weilding session. Diving into a sea of women in his underwear would be painful in more ways than one.

He would no doubt think of something, it wasn't like his brain was slow; he'd conjure something up after the winning moment if he had to. For now, he would focus all his thoughts on getting in that last shot before she got her final two. He heard movement not too far away, and when he tried to move into a better position, he felt another paintball hit his elbow. Yeouch. The funny bone. Not so funny really when a paintball crashed into it travelling at 300 feet per second. Or, in another words, bloody fast.

Now it was one shot each to win, a stand off to see who got their shot in first. Both had to be cautious, both wanted to win. Taking a deep, silent breath, he psyched himself up for his final move. The inflatables didn't exactly make for easy obstacles to move over and around, but he could pull something off, he was sure of it. Spying quickly, he saw Natalie on the move and moved himself, zipping quickly over to another obstacle, firing a shot at her as he slid over the top. The question was... had it hit?