By ChibiQuatre (6/20/00)
Yet another GW disclaimer: well, do you all REALLY want me to write a disclaimer?! We all know that I don't own GW (though God KNOWS I wish I did!). The GW boyz r'nt mine, never were, never will b. They are owned by their respective creators; Sunrise, There...happy!!! ((oh, and any trouble translating the japanese, I'll b happy to help!))
*Note: this is a Heero/Relena ficcie and is from their respective POVs. pleez, also read the sidestories that correspond to this fic. they're called "Constitution," "Duo no Hero," and "Final Farewell." thanx!
I was on a mission.
My mission: destroy the OZ base near old-Europe.
"Ninmu ryoukai."
* * *
Pagan rang the bell; dinnertime.
As I stared at the fading sunset, I felt a sharp pang of sorrow.
Heero left nearly a week ago. The other pilots had followed.
Now, I was here alone. Only Pagan, my faithful servant, comforted me, just as
my friends the Gundam pilots once had.
Pagan would never leave me, I thought angrily.
One by one, my friends had gone. The war wasn't over, more like...on pause.
First, Wufei left. Something about justice needing to be served in his
home-colony L5. Next, Trowa and Quatre both left. Quatre to his Winner
mansion, and Trowa, well, I don't know where Trowa is. I suppose he returned to
the Winner base with Quatre. The taller pilot had mentioned visiting Katherine.
Duo returned to colony L2. He said he was visiting Hilde, who was on military
leave in his colony.
And last but not least, Heero. He left earth and wandered to space, looking for a
good battle. Eventually, he returned to Earth , where I believe he just recently
received a mission.
A mission that would lead him back to me.
* * *
"Trowa, get out of here!"
Another explosion rocked the cockpit.
"Trowa, did you hear me?! Get away!" I yelled.
The video com-link suddenly flashed and I flipped the channels open. Trowa
was smiling grimly. "Not on your life. We have a mission too...to protect you."
I growled at Trowa and his blond partner. The reply from HeavyArms was soft,
barely audible, but I understood it perfectly. "I told you, Trowa, this is my
mission."
He glared at me with one green eye. "And I told you," he said, menacingly, "I
have a mission too."
Who put you up to this? Was it Relena?
"Heero," Quatre said. "We were sent to protect you. This is an incredibly
dangerous mission."
Bull, I thought.
"And," Quatre added as an afterthought, "We're here to make sure things go
according to planned."
I know who did this. It was Relena. She was always trying to keep me safe.
Sometimes, I wish I hadn't saved her so many times before. If she had been
eliminated, as in my earlier missions, this whole war would have been so much
less confusing.
Yes. The beautiful young Peacecraft complicated things.
The mission should have been a formidable challenge for one pilot. But before I
got to the enemy base that was my target, I landed right in an OZ ambush.
I should have seen it. I guess I was just a little tired.
Quatre called out as he was attacked, and Trowa flew to his aid. In the darkness
of space, I smiled. It was funny watching the two.
My thoughts were interrupted as yet another explosion rocked my side. K'so. I
had let those OZ troops surround me. It wasn't like me at all; in my condition, I
was hardly worthy to be called the 'Perfect Soldier.'
Not when I had Relena on the mind.
Both Quatre and Trowa cried out as they were attacked simultaneously. I gasped
silently at the sight of their Gundams; Sandrock was badly damaged, and
HeavyArms looked even worse for wear, having born the bow of the assault. I
saw OZ preparing to retrieve the two Gundams, and realized it was my fault.
I shouldn't have been thinking about Relena, I cursed myself. I've lost two of my
comrades and I'm being surrounded at this very moment. I can't take much more
of this...
After minutes of continued fighting, it was all over. Wing Zero was too damaged
to battle any longer. All thrusters were out and there was barely any fuel left. The
shield was useless; it had been blown to fragments by the OZ's many small but
effective beam cannons. My own weapons had been either lost or disabled in
some way or another. No defenses, no offenses, no means of propulsion, and
the enemy was aiming its fully charged beam cannon.
What else was left to do? I thought sadly.
"Mission, failed," I whispered, and reached for the little red button...
* * *
Something cool was being placed on my forehead.
I opened my eyes, then shut them sharply against the bright light.
"You're awake."
Upon hearing the voice, my eyes flashed open once again. Where was I?
When the dizziness passed, I could see clearly again.
It was Pagan.
Pagan? As in, Pagan, the-servant-of-Relena-Peacecraft Pagan?
Relena?
My head reeled. This was confusing. The last thing that I could remeber was
losing Quatre and Trowa, failing the mission, and reaching for that button.
The self-destruct button! Did it work? Had Wing Zero been destroyed?
Or had I been captured...was this all an illusion caused by some hallucinogens?
Was this really Pagan standing before me, or was it some OZ soldier imitating
the elderly gentleman?
I was getting really dizzy again.
"Are you alright sir?" the Pagan-like being asked.
"Pagan?"
"I'm here sir."
I relaxed. I guess it really was Pagan. Demo...
"Where's Relena?"
"She's out at the moment. She should be back soon." He looked down at me with
concern. "She left explicit directions for you to rest."
"My...my Gundam." I hoped to God that Wing Zero had been destroyed. Better
that than have those OZ soldiers pawing it.
"Pardon?"
I turned away from Pagan. I hated explaining myself, especially to someone who
knew nothing of the mechanics of war.
Pagan took the hint and said, "I'll leave you to rest, sir." He closed the door
behind him and left.
* * *
I returned home to find Pagan in Heero's room.
It had been fairly uneventful. Quatre had not been at his base. Rashid told me
that he and Trowa were missing, although Duo had come by earlier.
I wanted to question them on Heero's actions. Duo, of all people, had come
around on earth to say hello--he got bored I guess--when he spotted an intense
battle going on towards the east. It was a good thing he loved being the Great
Destroyer; Duo never could stay away from the battle.
That's when he saw Heero. Wing Zero had been ravaged. Later, he reported
that it looked as if the Perfect Soldier had self-destructed. Had it not been for
Duo, this time Heero would not have made it out alive.
I was worried about Heero, but he would be fine. Other than a few bruised ribs,
he would be okay. However, I was worried about Quatre and Trowa. Duo hadn't
seen them at all.
But I had sent them to help Heero. So where were they?
It was a mystery. Rashid knew they left, and with their Gundams. But if they left,
where were they now? Had they made it to the battlefield or had something
intercepted them before they could reach Heero?
I sighed and returned to my mansion.
I'd better check on Heero.
So, I had come home, only to find Pagan in Heero's room.
"How is he?" I asked when Pagan descended the stairs.
"The young boy is fine, Miss Relena. He just needs a little rest."
"Yokatta." I turned, and walked up the very stairs that Pagan had come down.
* * *
I winced and sat up in bed. I had to get out of here before Relena came back.
As if on cue, the door swung open, revealing a very worried-looking Relena.
"Heero!" she gasped in surprise.
Great, just my luck. The very person I don't want to see right now appears right
before me. Just kill me now. I didn't want Relena to see me like this...not in my
time of weakness.
I slid myself off the side of the bed, grimacing at the pain in my ribs. "Hn," I
mumbled in reply.
She was by my side in an instant, ushering me back into bed. I hadn't the
strength or energy to resist. Relena saw this. She looked stubborn enough to
use force to put me to bed if I tested her.
So what choice did I have but to obey?
And besides, this was Relena. How could anyone, much less me, resist?
She tucked me in, despite my protests. I did not enjoy being treated like a little
boy, although I did feel more secure this way. Relena was like a mother.
I couldn't remember my mother. It was nice to know that some people still had
some harboring motherly instincts in them. In this cruel world, mothers were
important.
I kept thinking about my mother. Floating in my empty memories, I drifted off to
sleep.
* * *
"Mom, mommie where are you?"
A little lost boy cried heartbrokenly into the faceless crowd.
"Mommie are you here? I can't see you."
The boy weaved his way through the crowd, all the while searching for his
mother. He bumped into the strangers.
The strangers weren't very nice. They shoved him around, and they stunk of
booze and alcohol. And not one of them would help the boy in his search.
The little lost boy continued wandering aimlessly in the neverending sea of
strangers. He was getting more scared; he didn't like the strangers.
"Mommie, help me. I can't fiind you; where are you mommie?"
The child found a hand in the crowd. "Mommie?"
It led him away from the strangers, and brought him to an abandoned building,
surrounded by acres and acres of brown, dead grass.
"Mom, where are we going?" the boy asked in confusion.
But it was not his mother. The hand was too cold, and he knew he would never
see his mother again. But he did not know the stranger; the fog was too thick for
him to see anything but the hand. The pale white hand curled around his small
fingers, squeezing so tightly that it began to hurt. Despite the boy's pleas, the
hand held strong.
The new stranger led the boy through two large metal doors. Inside the building
was a large machine. What was that? Large, metal, surprisingly lifelike, it
radiated with a kind of energy. It was one of those machines that were on the
television set earlier. It looked like a mecha, but was different from those bad OZ
suits that were always being talked about.
The fog finally rolled away...to reveal a taller boy. He looked to be a teen,
wearing a green tank top and black spandex shorts. He had spiky brown hair,
and had cobalt blue eyes. The little boy thought he looked like the stranger.
"Who are you?" the child asked, knowing full well what the stranger would say.
The answer whispered about as the fog rolled back in to conceal the stranger, as
he answered, "I am you."
The little boy gaped. He needed to ask the stranger more. He wanted to know
more.
But when the fog cleared for the second time, the stranger was gone, and all that
was left was the glowing mobile suit.
* * *
I woke up with a start.
Sweat was pouring down my forehead.
Nightmare. Just a nightmare.
Demo, it had seemed so real.
I felt a hand on my shoulder and whipped my head around. Relena was at my
bedside. She looked just as worried as she had earlier.
"Heero, what's wrong? Is everything okay?"
I gazed levelly at her. She was worried. About me.
How touching, how gracious of her.
"Hai," I replied. "Just a nightmare."
"Would you like to talk about it?"
"Iie," I shook my head. She looked disappointed, so I added as an afterthought,
"Thanks."
She looked at me, shock written all over her pretty face. I knew why. I had never
thanked anyone in my life. Not my parents, not the Doctors, not my fellow
Gundam pilots. And I'm sure she was aware of that.
* * *
I was more than a little stunned when Heero thanked me.
Seeing the apparent shock in my face, Heero smiled. He actually smiled!
Imagine that...I was probably the first to see him genuinely smile.
I had cracked the shell.
I smiled happily. This was why. His thanks, his smile, this was why I lived.
This was why I wanted him to live.
* * *
I was dreaming again.
It wasn't one of those dreams where everything seems so real, like it happened
yesterday. No, it was totally the opposite. Everything seemed so misty and
dreamlike that it would fade away into oblivion if I so much as blinked.
And it was a sweet dream, nothing like the bitter nightmare that woke me and
almost had me screaming for my mother...my mother whom I no longer
remembered, whom I knew I loved but had no recollection of.
This dream was new. Something I had never dreamed of dreaming.
* * *
The little boy wandered the crowd. "Mommie where are you?"
"Here I am, dear." The honey-like voice floated out from the mist. "Don't be
afraid."
"I can't see you mommie. Where are you?"
A hand reached out from the crowd. Unlike the cold uncaring hand that had led
the boy earlier, this hand was warm and rosy. The child reached for the hand
eagerly.
And as once before, it led him through the crowd, and brought him to the
building. But it was no longer abandoned. And the acres and acres of land
around it were not dead, but very much alive. Green grass surrounded a familiar
mansion.
Soon, the fog cleared to reveal the new stranger. She was a beautiful girl, with
long honey-colored hair to match the sugary sweet voice. She had blue eyes,
brighter than his own. And behind her stood four boys. He recognized them, as
friends. "I'm here for you Heero," she said, hugging the boy.
The child hugged back. Deep in her embrace, he felt safe and secure, as if she
was his mother. Relena was the mother that he had been searching for as a little
boy and the mother that he had found as a Gundam pilot.
At long last, he had found his comfort.
~OWARI~
Well, what did u all think? Good, bad, *cough* sucks *cough* i promise i'll do better on my next Heero/Relena ficcie LOL well, in any case, rate n review minna! i'll b happy if u wanna e-mail me 2! and till next fic, ja-ne! ^_~
ChibiQuatre @ tigerlily6c@aol.com