Kitty-chan: Hi! This is my second Gundam Wing fic, so I'm excited! Up front… I don't own ay of the Gundam Wing characters!
Duo: This had better not be like the last disclaimer you did, Kitty-chan.
Kitty-chan: Nah! I'm gonna do something new!
Quatre: What's that?
Kitty-chan: Well, I thought that Pixie stix are getting kinda old... so I thought up a new thing to do!
Heero: What's that?
Kitty-chan: CLONING MACHINE! 'holds up a small gun'
All sans Kitty-chan: NOOOOOOOO!
The man jumped over the hindrances in his path as he streaked down the road. He pulled a pistol out of the gun holster on his hip and fired a few rounds at his pursuers, not caring if he hit one or not. Exhaustion pulled at his body, but he denied it with all his might. He couldn't give up now. The chase had been going on for over three hours. The man had long ago deserted his motorcycle, tucking it away to a place where he could access it again if need be. After that, he had continued on foot. Despite the lengthy chase, the pursuers showed no signs of letting up. Rain lashed at his thin body like bee stings, but he paid it no heed. Pain was like emotion. Something to be ignored. He felt a wave of relief bathe him as two large metal gates loomed into view. He took a backward glance at the pursuers before quickly scaling the gates and dropping to the other side to disappear into the darkness of the night.
The group of men chasing the man stopped at the edge of the private property, not wanting to scale the gates. It would take too long, and they had already lost him. He lifted his radio to his mouth and, panting, began speaking. "All units return to base. Subject has disappeared."
The pursued person ran for a good ten minutes, blindly trying to ignore the exhaustion threatening to steal his consciousness away. But in a few minutes, his abused body gave out, falling to the ground. He attempted to get up, but then gave up, realizing that it was best if he rested his body. His eyes closed and he drifted into a dreamless sleep.
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"Duo!" Hilde cried, throwing her arms around her boyfriend's neck. Hilde was a younger woman with dark blue hair and thick bangs, which cast shadows upon her glowing violet eyes. Her pale skin gave her a fair look, but her baggy clothes brought her back down to earth.
"Hilde? What's wrong? I usually don't get such an enthusiastic greeting when I go out for fifteen minutes. You must really be hungry." Duo held up the bags of fast food he had just bought. Duo was a man about the same age as Hilde. He had sparkling, life-filled cobalt eyes and thigh –length hair pulled back and braided all the way down. He had a slender frame that was usually covered in black attire.
"Yeah, I know. But, can't I hug my boyfriend without having to explain myself?" She sighed, not removing her arms. She held on tight, not even pulling away to look at him.
"Hilde, what's wrong? You've been acting strange the last few days." Duo untangled himself from her arms and walked to set the bags of food on the counter. He turned only to find her standing behind him, awaiting another embrace.
Duo welcomed her embrace with open arms and returned it. For a while, neither of them spoke, one worried, the other confused. Finally, Hilde spoke, softly and quietly. "Duo... they passed that act. The one against the soldiers." She could feel tears attempting to work their way out of her eyes. But she couldn't let them go. She had to be strong, for Duo.
Duo froze. His breathing even seemed to have stopped. "They passed the confinement act?" he wondered weakly.
"Yeah, but there's more to it. The government blames the Gundams for the start of the war. People remaining from White Fang and Oz have worked their way into power in both the colonies and the ESUN. They've convinced the rest of the government that the war would not have started if the Gundams had not come to Earth." She cried angrily.
Duo held Hilde as if it were she that needed comforting. "Can't say that I'm surprised."
"Huh?" Hilde still didn't move
"Some people just can't get used to or accept peace. As Noin said, it is a lot more difficult to maintain peace than it is to obtain it. There will always be people who oppose peace. Whether they are just malicious or if they are simply uncomfortable with it." Duo let out a heavy sigh.
"What are you going to do?" Hilde, now more than ever, had to work to keep the tears of concern from tracing down her cheeks.
"Well, that depends. Were there any special conditions involving the Gundam Pilots capture?" Duo wondered, hesitantly, almost knowing the answer. Hilde was silent. Duo sighed and lead her over to the couch where they both sat down, slightly facing each other. Duo covered her hand with his own. "What is it, Hilde?"
Hilde took a deep breath and brought her violet eyes to meet his orbs of cobalt. Duo's eyes had that ready-for-anything look in them. She paused and began. "The officials of Oz and White Fang, mainly those two men, Suuchin and Katome, have done a lot of yapping. The confinement act was passed because they convinced everyone else that soldiers are too dangerous to keep around. But they've argued that the Gundam pilots are even more dangerous. They say, 'They started one, they'll start another'. If you pilots are arrested, you will be tried for starting a war, and will be faced with the death penalty." Hilde sighed and dropped her head.
Duo sighed and looked thoughtfully about the room. So, someone finally decided to try and get rid of us. I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later. Duo managed a weak smile and gathered Hilde into his arms again. There was a long silence as the couple sat, holding each other, trying to banish their own fears, nightmares, and doubts. Duo took a deep breath. "Hilde..."
"No, Duo!" Hilde pulled away and stood, sending an accusing, yet concerned glare at him. "I know what you're going to say, and my answer to that is no!"
"Hilde...!" Duo growled warningly.
"Duo, if you leave, you'll be worse off than before!" Hilde almost yelled.
"Why do you say that? As the God of Death, don't you think I'd work best alone?" Duo stood as well, putting his hands on her shoulders. "I can't let you get involved in this. If they found out you were sheltering a pilot, they could kill you!"
"I know they could, but Duo! I thought that when you destroyed Deathscythe, you let go of the God of Death title go as well! I'm involved in this as much as you are! I was a soldier once too!"
"Yeah! A soldier from Oz! Suuchin and Katome are going to protect OZ soldiers in case it needs to call on their loyalties again! You are safe for now. But even Suuchin and Katome won't spare you if they discover that you are hiding me! I will only waste that safety!" Duo exclaimed, his eyes burning.
"Duo, I'm staying with you. It'll do you good to have someone to gather information out in the open for you. I love you, Duo, and I don't want you to get hurt." Hilde slowly stepped foreword, her violet eyes soft and warm.
"Ditto, Hilde!" Duo cried forcefully.
"Duo, you're a people person. You need to be around people or your humor and bright spirit go to waste. Please, Duo... allow me to help you." Hilde begged, putting a hand to his cheek.
"Hilde!" Duo was cut off when she broke his will to argue by sealing her lips to his.
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"Great job, everyone! That was an excellent show!" cried the ringmaster to a local circus. There were murmurs of congratulations amongst the crowd, young and old, before the man dismissed them to bed. The crowd dispersed, filing into the many trailers that littered the back of the festival grounds. Only two people remained. A man, and a woman. They sat on a few of the crates that were stored behind the big top, watching the colors of the sunset dance across the sky. There was a long silence between the two, until the girl spoke.
"Trowa?" The man made no attempt to respond, but she knew he was listening. "Trowa, are you going to fight again? Are you going to leave?"
The man's gaze shifted to his brown shoes. Trowa was a thin man, but every inch an athlete. He had long, thin, but muscular legs, and strong arms. He had an elegant, elven face with dark green, serious, mysterious eyes. One eye was covered thanks to his bangs, which were brushed to the right side of his face. "I am not sure yet."
"You could stay here. The only people here who know you're a Gundam Pilot are you, the ringmaster and I. No one would know." She sighed.
"That may be true for now, but how long can I live my life in such secrecy?" Trowa wondered, his normal eerie calmness settling about him.
Cathrine turned slightly to face him. She was taller than him, and considered herself his protective older sister. She had curly red hair and soft gray eyes. "Haven't you always lived in secrecy?"
"To a certain extent, yes. But, before, no one would recognize me for what I am, simply by looking at my face. I was free to go wherever I pleased. Now I am restricted to this circus." Trowa's voice was dead and emotionless. "While I like living at the circus, I don't think I could live my life like that. Having to hide my face to the point of wearing a mask."
"It wouldn't be forever. Just until the Confinement Act is revoked. Once people see what's really going on, they can rally against the government and!"
"No, Cathy. Ever since Suuchin and Katome got themselves into the ESUN, the people's power has diminished. It's practically non-existent now. They won't be able to do anything." Trowa sighed.
"But, for now at least, will you stay with us?" Cathy requested, her eyes sparkling with concern.
Trowa looked at her, then allowed his thin lips to curve upwards slightly in a smile. "Of course, Cathy."
Cathy smiled brightly, but her smile wilted as she spotted a creature, silhouetted against the sunset, limping toward them. "Trowa? What's that?" She wondered, hopping down from the box she rested on.
The figure continued to approach. After hearing Trowa's name spoken, it spoke as well, its voice raspy. "T-Trowa... It's me..."
I know that voice! "Quatre!" Trowa raced foreword, catching the Arabian boy as he fell foreword, his legs giving out. "What happened to you?"
"The government... they came. The Maguanacs... tried to protect me... but... resulted in a fight... The Maguanacs! All gone!... Arrested... some... ... ... dead." He panted.
"What happened to you though?" Trowa repeated, feeling grief rise in his gut. Grief for the man in his arms. He suppressed it and continued to wait for Quatre's answer.
"One of the officers... got a hold on me... kicking... punching... and... a knife." Quatre managed.
"A knife? He cut you? Where?" Cathy asked, immediately concerned.
"Leg... and back."
"Come on. We'll get you inside." Trowa scooped the injured man into his powerful arms and ran toward the ringmaster's trailer, Cathy by his side.
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"Water, Sankan Katome and Akun Suuchin are requesting communication. Should I put it through?"
The brown haired girl looked at her partner with analyzing pale blue eyes. Her partner was a Chinese man. He had short slicked-back black hair caught in a ponytail at the base of his skull. His brown eyes reiterated his question. "Sure, but Thunder, you might need to go into the back. With the Confinement Act and all that, you might not want them to see you. But, as long as the Preventors are around, you should be safe." Water smiled.
Thunder nodded and stood, heading to the back of the control room, out of the pool of vision of the computer screen.
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"Good morning, Miss Relena." Pagan smiled and bowed as his young charge entered her office.
"Ranya said you had some news for me." Relena mentioned immediately. Ranya was Relena's personal assistant. She was a young woman, not very experienced in politics, but she was learning, through Relena's tutelage. Relena herself was the Vice Foreign Minister from Earth. She was tall with waist length, golden brown hair usually held in a dignified low ponytail. Relena sat at her desk and looked up at her butler with big, liquid aquamarine eyes.
"Yes. The Confinement Act has been passed."
"What?" Relena stood, slamming her hands on her desk. "How? How did Suuchin and Katome convince the entire world? Their arguments were ridiculous and unfounded!"
"Apparently not. But in the case of your Gundam Pilot friend, he is faced with the death penalty. The government blames the pilots for the start of the war."
"The death penalty! No! They can't execute five teens!"
"Well, legally, they are adults now, being nineteen and all. So, they'll be tried as adults." Pagan reminded her.
"But... how could they?" Relena sank into her spinning chair. "There's not enough proof."
"Miss Relena!" Ranya burst in the doors, soaking wet. Apparently, she had been out in the pouring rain. Relena had jut now noticed that it was, indeed raining. "There's a person outside! We are afraid he might be dead!"
"Dead?" Relena stood and ran to the back door. She grabbed her umbrella and headed out into the back yard. The butler and Ranya followed as Relena neared the motionless figure. Relena studied the person, who was lying on their stomach. It was a man. A thin, yet clearly built man. A long black blazer and a small black duffel bag lay to the side, obviously his. He wore a white t-shirt, though with the water soaking it, he might as well have not had a shirt on at all. His dark, somewhat tight jeans were soaked through, and he wore large brown combat boots. The thing that caught Relena's eye was something shining at his slender hip. She took a step foreword and craned her neck to get a closer look. She took a step back as she realized it was a gun. But she paused. That smell... The rain had not yet completely washed away the scent of the man's cologne. That smell is familiar. Could it...? The minute the thought came to mind, he looked incredibly familiar. The mess of chocolate brown hair, the wiry frame lined with toned muscles, and the ever-present gun at his hip. "Heero!" Relena appeared at his side and gathered him into her arms, turning him over onto his back. She checked and confirmed a strong pulse in his neck, then attempted to shake him awake. "Heero! Heero, wake up!" He didn't stir. "Take him inside! Quickly!" Relena ordered.
Pagan took the unconscious man from the concerned woman's arms and headed, slowly inside.
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