Protector
Hello there! This is my first attempt at a fanfiction of any kind. Well, that's not entirely true, but it is my first completed one. I'll put disclaimers and notes at the bottom of each section, but there's one thing I need to explain here and those are the text conventions I used in writing this fic. Here they are:
Normal
Emphasized
*Thought*
"Spoken"
~Flashback~
That about covers it. Now, on with the story!
The group of five friends stepped out of the van and into the damp air. It was going to rain for the sixth straight day. As Relena climbed out of the rear of Quatre's van, she looked up at the overcast sky with a glum expression and closed her eyes.
*The weather certainly has been fitting for the past few days. When will this all end?*
For the past several weeks Relena had been under special guard. The young Vice Foreign Minister had recently received a letter in which a person, who could only be described as a raving lunatic, announced his intention to assassinate her. Upon reading this letter, her brother immediately ordered several Preventer bodyguards to watch after her. Relena, being who she was, argued with him.
~ "Milliardo, I do not need bodyguards!"
"Yes you do! Listen to me, Relena. Whoever this maniac is, he thinks he can warn you and still get away with it. This guy is either very good at what he does or he has a very big ego. I am not taking the chance that he's just full of himself! You will not talk me out of this!"
Relena scowled angrily at her brother. Her face softened as she realized he was right.
"Alright, fine. But I will not have a bunch of strangers following me around all day."
Her brother thought quickly.
"OK. How about the Gundam pilots? You know them, you're friends with them, and they can protect you. Deal?"
Relena thought for a moment. It might be nice to see them all together again. They were her friends and she did like them, one in particular more than the others. Plus, if the five of them were around, she would probably get to see Hilde, Catherine, Dorothy, and Sally as well. The thought made her smile inside, though she'd never let her brother know. She spoke in a smooth, even tone.
"That's fine. At least I can talk to them."
She got up from her chair and started toward the door. As Relena placed her hand on the doorknob her brother called to her.
"Relena?"
She paused and looked back at him. He smiled weakly.
"Thank you for understanding."
Relena managed a half-hearted smile and walked out the door. ~
That had been nearly three weeks ago. She had at times wondered if this was all just some sick joke, but with her luck it would prove to be all too real.
She felt something brush against her arm and turned to see Heero stepping out of the van to stand next to her. He, of course, had taken it upon himself to be Relena's personal bodyguard. He was with her for as close to twenty-four hours a day as he could manage. During her meetings he was forced to sit outside the conference room until it was over. If he had diplomatic clearances, however, he'd be in the seat right next to her. At night, he had gotten into the habit of watching her from a chair in the corner of the room as she slept. He watched her like a hawk though the entire day. He looked at her now and saw the sad look on her face.
Relena looked back over her shoulder at Heero. He always seemed so calm. She knew from experience, however, that his mind was racing, taking in every sight and sound around him. She hung her head.
"Will this ever end, Heero?"
Heero was concentrating on looking for anything out of the ordinary. He could not see any immediate dangers, but that didn't mean there wasn't anything to worry about. His task done, he turned his attention to Relena's question.
"Everything has to end sometime. It's just a matter of whenand how. I just hope Sally and Wufei can get some information from that letter."
Because Relena's would-be assassin had not made his move, Noin thought it might be wise to start on the offensive and actively search for the crazed individual. To this end, Wufei and Sally had taken the letter and were pouring over it looking for anything that could help. They looked for fingerprints, hair samples, anything. Duo suggested they look to see if the guy sneezed or coughed on the paper while he was writing. Thinking he was joking around, Wufei had nearly throttled him, but the braided pilot pointed out that most people don't think about the traces of DNA they leave when they cough or sneeze and that this guy probably wouldn't have thought about it before putting the letter in the mail. Wufei thought a moment and actually agreed. As crazy and idiotic as it sounded it was worth a try, if only to prove Duo wrong.
With the information they were able to get, Zechs, Noin, Wufei, and Sally were searching around in the Preventers' database to see if they could match a print, DNA pattern, or maybe an MO from another assassination.
Heero continued with his thought.
"If they can come up with something we can stop this guy before he even gets close to you."
Relena looked up at him with the same half-hearted smile she had given her brother. She threw her arms around him, resting her head on his shoulder as a single tear rolled down her cheek. Hesitantly, he put his arms around her shoulders. Her smile widened.
"Thank you, Heero. You may not always bring good news, but at least you are honest."
He squeezed her closer and brought a hand up to stroke her honey-blonde hair. Gently, he pushed her away, wiping her tears from her moist cheeks.
"Let's get indoors."
They started walking toward the manor. Relena kept an arm around his waist and he in turn kept an arm around her shoulders.
Ahead of them, Quatre, Duo, and Dorothy were already at the door. As Pagan opened the door for them, Dorothy punched Duo in the arm. Heero and Relena hadn't heard what he said, but they were pretty sure who it was about.
The pair walked up the steps. Heero stopped to let Relena go first and, after one last look around, followed her inside. Pagan closed the door behind him and walked to Relena.
"Good to see you still safe, Miss Relena. I have a message for you. Your brother just called to inform you that the others have left and are on their way here. They should arrive in about twenty minutes. He also wanted me to tell you that he and Miss Noin would be working late and not to expect them home until after dinner."
"Thank you, Pagan. Is there anything else?"
"Yes. I took the liberty of having one of the maids lay out a change of clothes for you upstairs."
Relena grinned widely. She had been dying to get out of her formal uniform and into something more comfortable. But first, she was going to take a shower. Quickly, she gave Pagan a hug and ran up the stairs. Heero started to follow her, but was stopped by Pagan's voice.
"I also have something for you, Master Heero."
Heero turned to Pagan with a half-surprised look on his face. Both because Pagan had something to tell him and that he'd called him Master Heero.
"I prefer just Heero, if it's all the same to you."
"As you wish, Heero. One of the groundskeepers thought he saw
someone lurking about in the garden this afternoon. He said it looked as if someone might
have been hiding in the trees at the back of the estate, but he couldn't be sure."
Heero wrinkled his brow. If there was someone there it was most likely the man they were after. And if he was already lurking about here, they didn't have much time before he played his hand.
*Damn it, Wufei! Get me something on this guy! Anything will do.*
He glanced up the stairs in the direction of Relena's room. She would be all right for a few minutes. He looked over at Pagan again.
"Where is this groundskeeper? I'd like to speak with him."
"Of course. This way."
Pagan gestured for Heero to follow, which he did. They passed by the other three, who were talking about nothing in particular.
"Hey there! Hold up a sec, Pagan!"
Pagan stopped and turned to see Duo jogging up to him.
"I don't mean to sound like a jerk butis dinner ready? I'm starvin'!"
Duo rubbed his empty stomach as he spoke the last few words. Heero slammed his palm into his forehead while Pagan let out a small chuckle.
"Yes. The kitchen staff will be serving dinner shortly."
"Great! Thanks!";
"You are welcome."
Duo went back to the others to tell them the good news while Pagan and Heero continued on their way.
Well, what do you think so far? Yeah, OK. Its pretty boring so far, but I have to setup the story somewhere! Some of the characters are a bit out-of-character, but that's OK. And this is probably one of the few fics that Pagan plays a decent part in! Or, he will...anyway, disclaimers and notes.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Gundam Wing or Perfect Dark (it comes in later...don't worry about it now). They are copyrighted by people who have a lot more money than I do. This was written for fun and for the fans of the series. All ideas concerning the storyline are mine.
NOTES: OK, I'm not entirely sure about the sneezing and coughing thing. If any DNA is left behind after coughing/sneezing it's probably such a small amount that it would be hard to pick up. For the sake of argument, we'll say it is and you can. For those that don't know, MO stands for 'modus operandi' (I think). In plain English it means the way a certain thing is done. Often, when people have to do something multiple times they tend to do it the same way. Essentially, what it's a pattern that is recognizable from one thing to the next. Detectives and cops use this kinda thing all the time to link crimes together.
Comments and criticisms are welcome. Please send them to HeeroWZero@hotmail.com and be sure to include your name so I can get back to you. Thanks for reading!