Disclaimer: All characters and specifics of "Kidousenshi Gundam SEED" are copyrighted Sotsu Agency, Sunrise and Mainichi Broadcasting. All rights reserved. This fanfiction is property of Shikami Yamino and is not intended for any monetary purpose nor an infringement of copyright laws. No one is to post/host/use any aspect of this fanfic without explicit permission from the author.
Notes: One of the fics I've always wanted to write, ever since (some) people started screaming about Cagalli being OOC in Destiny. Quite possibly the shortest thing I'll ever be able to write as well, clocking in at a mere 268 words /grins/
Labelled Gundam SEED and not Gundam SEED Destiny because that's how I distinguish where it should go in the canon timeline -- i.e. before Destiny.
Kidousenshi Gundam SEED: "Red"
by Shikami Yamino
Cagalli doesn't wear red anymore.
Red was confidence. Red was pride.
Red was passion unbridled, and fire utterly uncompromised.
Red was rebellion -- a challenge issued in defiance of those who would see her dressed in the pastels befitting of an heiress to a Ruling House.
Red was freedom -- the personification of a life unburdened by expectations, and the manifestation of an ability to simply be.
Red was also a uniform, buried deep in the closet of the room adjacent to hers.
But rebellion was a thing of the past; a coveted notion willingly and resolutely brushed aside in favor of the shackles of rank and responsibility that bind her now.
The selfsame shackles that compelled her to leash her passion when faced with the experience her elders commanded. Shackles that gave her no choice but to curb her fire in deference to decorum and an ever-gracious formality.
Confidence had no place in Council Chambers -- not when she was playing a game to which she didn't know the rules.
Pride had no leverage in her decisions -- not when the lives and futures of so many hung in the balance.
Freedom was a luxury she could no longer afford.
And when that most important occupant of the room next door was doing everything in his power to forget who he was and all that he had ever been, how could she conceivably do anything less than respect the decision he had made?
And so Cagalli Yula Athha doesn't wear red anymore.
But that does not mean she didn't want to with every fibre of her being.
End
Final Notes: While I think Cagalli looks gorgeous in those pastel green gowns, I've always been of the opinion that red suits her personality more... So it became a bit of an interesting development when the animators chose a much softer palette for her in Destiny than in Seed -- which ultimately spawned the basis for this piece.
As for the Cagalli being OOC comments, I think the word I would use to describe her at the beginning of Destiny is "stifled". Everything that we loved about her was being stifled by her new environment -- which is what I hope I got across in this little ficlet.
And although I believe that this tempering of her personality was absolutely vital in her pursuit of being a good leader for Orb, I also think that she was swinging towards the other extreme for a while, in being too timid and conservative, before managing to find a middle ground that suited her. Character development is such a wonderful thing. /loves Cagalli/
