Authoress's notes: I started writing this story because of several things in the anime that made me very unhappy; the main and most obvious thing was Neil's death at the end of season one. The other is that Lyle ultimately ended up losing everything. My intention in writing this fanfic is to remedy these things, albeit in a very round about and sometimes unpleasant way.
If all goes as according to my wicked plan, the time line will be slightly tweaked, but hopefully will be considered canon-compliant. And yes, this is romance where two female OCs are involved with the Dylandy twins during their respective seasons. This story also includes future events and relationships, but has absolutely nothing to do with aliens.
I wasn't happy with a good portion of the original story, so I have decided to delete it, and repost this. If you have read the original version, I thank you, and hope you will like this version even better. Also, there are things that I kept the same, but did make major changes to others, predominantly a decent amount of dialogue, however chapter one remains ninety-nine percent intact because I just couldn't find a better way to start things off.
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam 00 or its characters, nor do I claim ownership of the quotes herein. Also, there are vague references to themes seen in Gundam Wing, which I also do not own. (The latter was purely accidental and I didn't realize what I had done until I stared revising this story.)
Warnings (including all future chapters) Language, non-descriptive mentions of sexual abuse of a minor, mild-ish violence, death, and post traumatic stress disorder
A huge thanks to my beta, bbybear85. You are a truly amazing person and I can't thank you enough for your guidance. To the rest of you, I can't recommend Bear's GW fanfics highly enough. Additionally, a big thanks to those of you who have given me the resolve to keep writing this, and other stories. I am so happy to have you all as my friends.
All quotes were carefully selected from the Criminal Minds Fan Wiki where the owner(s) have painstakingly archived all of the amazing opening and closing quotes from the series. While this may seem strange to most of you, I find a vast majority of the quotes used in the show relevant to the character in this story.
"It is not so important who starts the game, but who finishes it." - John Wooden
Ordinary World
Chapter 1
It wasn't the type of place that catered to just anyone, partly because of its nondescript appearance, and partly because of the location. Most that frequented Bailey's were locals, many of whom had lived in this town and surrounding area for generations. Baileys' patrons would come in after a hard day of work to have a bite to eat, and stay to drink, some until they were barely able to stand. For one Neil Dylandy, this was a home away from home. He knew the people that frequented the place well, and considered many of them to be extended family. This particular evening found him in the middle of a game of cards with three considerably older men, all of them very unsatisfied with the fact that Lady Luck had apparently taken quite a shine to him.
"So what's the verdict Quinn, you in or out?"
Andrew Quinn spent a moment looking over his hand before responding with a reluctant sigh. "I fold. The wife's gonna have my head when I get home."
With Quinn's final resignation, they all turned in their cards, and once again Lady Luck smiled on Neil.
Very obviously pleased with the outcome, and effectively extending the dismal losing streaks of the other men at the table, Neil gathered his winnings. "Well gentlemen, it's been a pleasure doing business with you."
As it happened though, the evening was still relatively young, and they decided to start up another game, the three older men not content to go home empty handed. Just as the cards were dealt, and the bets placed, there came a hush over the room, the chorus of loud conversations suddenly dwindling to whispers as a very attractive red headed young woman entered through the front door. She quickly scanned the room and the people within, clearly feeling out of place. Even so, she settled down at a table located in an out of the way, dimly lit corner.
Quinn raised an eyebrow at the apparent newcomer's presence. "Haven't seen her in here before."
"Maybe she's new in town." the man known only as Callahan mused.
The third gentleman by the name of Sean O'Reilly let out a low, soft whistle as he began to reminisce about the days when he had been young and eligible, "She's quite a looker ain't she? If I didn't have to answer to that hag I call a wife..."
"What do you mean by 'hag'? Mary's a good woman and you know it old man." Mary O'Reilly had always treated Neil like the grandson that she and Sean never had.
Sean bristled at the younger man's scolding. "Oh sure! You can say that cause you're not the one getting' a fryin' pan upside the head nearly every night just cause you come home too late!"
Eager to change the course of the conversation, Quinn piped up with a suggestion for the youngest of their group. "You know, you'd do well to spend some time with a woman instead of always takin' my hard earned money. Why not go over there and introduce yourself?"
"If I were a betting man I'd say she's waiting for someone." replied Neil. "Although..." he continued, also taking a quick look around, and focusing on one particular individual "...suddenly I have a feeling things could get ugly if someone doesn't keep an eye on her."
The other three turned their attentions in the same direction, recognition of Neil's concern instant. The man in question was notorious for forcing his unwanted attentions on unsuspecting young women. They watched as a bar maid served the man yet another drink, and as he took it upon himself to "familiarize" himself with the newest employee. She merely flinched and walked away adhering to her boss's instructions on how to deal with people like him. Annoyance mixed with anger flashed across the man's face, but quickly faded when he spied the pretty redhead in the corner.
Neil sighed. "I was hoping we wouldn't have to go through this again tonight." It was now only a matter of time before something happened. The question being, however, could she handle herself in such a situation. As it stood, she didn't seem to have any idea she was being sized up.
[xy]
Deciding that the situation called for drastic measures, Quinn leaned back in his chair and stretched, trying to make the corresponding yawn seem genuine. "I think it's gettin' past my bedtime."
The other two older men looked at Quinn knowing exactly what he was getting at. Sean O'Reilly was the next to speak. "Now that I think of it, I think I'll go home and help the misses with some housework."
Callahan being a man of few words managed to quickly come up with his own excuse for an abrupt departure. "I think I left the oven on."
Neil refocused his attention on the three men at the table just as Quinn stood, pushing his chair under the table, and the other two following suit. "Oh no. If you think I'm falling for that again you're all crazy. Besides, there's a chance I'll let at least one of you win this time around." Neil responded in an attempt to bring them back into the game.
"I have a feelin' it won't be long before you're holdin' more than a full house." Quinn said grinning slightly. "You don't need us old geezers hangin' around complicatin' things."
"That's right. We'd just be in the way." added O'Reilly.
Sean stood, and pushed his chair to the table. "Good luck to ya, lad."
"Good luck with what? I already said that all I'm going to do is make sure the girl makes it out of here safely. But that doesn't mean..." The protest was lost amongst the other voices in the room, though as the last of the three men were just exiting the pub. The sudden turn of events had left him alone and slightly vexed at the situation. This wasn't the first time they had done this, and he knew they meant well, but the last time he took their collective advice concerning the opposite sex things didn't turn out well at all. Having no choice but to concede defeat, Neil began stacking the chips and cards, and generally organizing everything as it should be.
No sooner had he finished the task at hand, Neil heard an unfamiliar female voice, and a very unhappy one at that. Looking in the direction it had come from it clearly belonged to the redhead. Her voice was soft, and yet steady and determined. She was doing her best to rid herself of the lecherous pest that had finally made his way over to her. Neil watched as she struggled to find exactly the right moment in which to take her leave. Two options presented themselves at this point; he could put an end to the other man's aspirations of conquest now, or wait and see if the young lady would be successful in her refusal to give into his advances. And of course there was the third option should the situation require it, though he hoped it wouldn't come to that. For the moment, letting the scene play out without any interruption seemed like the best idea.
[xy]
Scarlet mentally scolded herself for not trusting her better judgment when her destination finally came into view. Some would call it a 'gut feeling', but she preferred 'woman's intuition' that told her she should just pay the extra money and have the taxi take her back home, but still, she promised to meet her soon-to-be ex boyfriend at this place in particular. After all, he insisted saying that it had the best drinks in town. She'd received a text message from him saying he was running late, and he wanted her to wait for him. At the time it didn't seem like a bad idea, so she agreed. This agreement however was what had ultimately led to this moment of her feeling vulnerable, and finding it increasingly difficult to fend off the advances of a man who had clearly reached his limit hours ago.
After what seemed like an eternity of extended leers and transparent, lackluster come-ons, Scarlet decided that it was time to end the charade. "I really need to be on my way, but thanks for the offer." she said, her tone defiantly sarcastic. She stood, gathering her coat and purse, but no sooner had she turned away from the man to leave, he took the opportunity to put his fail safe into action. He grabbed her from behind making sure that the heel of her black leather boot caught on a loose floorboard. Scarlet fell backwards, and the man caught her while simultaneously holding a switchblade to her throat.
"I really don't wanna hurt you beyond what's fun, but I will if you cross me. So, don't even think about screaming."
[xy]
Any woman that left with the resident sewer rat willingly only had themselves to blame if, or rather when, the lecherous troublemaker decided they owed him a 'favor.' This was not one of those times, however, and it was obvious that the odds were not in the redhead's favor. Neil's patience with this nearly every night scenario was wearing thin, and since she had unwittingly gotten herself into an impossible situation, he decided to lend her a hand. Knowing all too well that a confrontation was inevitable, he made his way over to the greasy little man and the distressed damsel.
"Still can't take a hint, can you Hyde? How about letting this one off the hook."
The man named Hyde straightened himself at the taller man's presence still holding the blade to Scarlet's neck. "Mind your business, brat. I'm busy."
"You wouldn't have to go to all this trouble if you'd just go about it like normal people do. Those little pills must get expensive after a while." He cast a glance at the man's would be prize. "It's a good thing you didn't let him buy you a drink."
"I don't recall askin' for your opinion, Dylandy. I'm sick an' tired of you always ruinin' my fun, so why don't you just go away and pretend you never saw this."
"Come on man, make this easy on all of us and let the girl go. I'm not going to ask you again."
"And what if I don't?" Hyde challenged. He barely had time to blink before he had the barrel of a shiny black pistol pointed squarely at his forehead.
"Then I'll put and end to this routine permanently, and judging from all the trouble you've caused the people in this town I don't think you're ready to meet your maker just yet."
[xy]
Scarlet sighed with relief when the man removed the blade from her neck deciding instead to turn it on the man with the gun. Observing her immediate surroundings it was clear that there was no way she'd be able to escape past them unnoticed, so she opted to take refuge under the table. It was all so surreal, Scarlet mused briefly. Somehow she felt as if she were a cast member in a Hollywood movie, except for the fact that there were no bright lights, camera crews, and none of the dialogue had been scripted. Her thoughts were broken when she heard Hyde laugh at the stranger's obviously less than idle threat.
"You're bluffing."
"Are you really willing to test that theory?"
An uneasy silence fell upon the room the, patrons now focused on the standoff. A collective sigh of relief was heard as Hyde put away his switchblade, apparently coming to his senses and opting to cut his losses. From her vantage point under the table Scarlet watched the man retreat. Defeated, he walked away while muttering some kind of veiled threat under his breath. The silence brought on by the standoff quickly subsided as Hyde made his way to the exit, returning the scene to what was normal on any given night.