Summary: Makoto Kino is bored with life, her now peace-filled existence hardly enough to keep her motivated. In an unexpected elevator malfunction, a woman changes her world completely.
The beautiful weather and perfect clear sky seemed to elude the tall forlorn brunette as she traveled leisurely on the pavement towards her daily destination. The clicking of her regular forest green heels was the only sound registering in her mind as she exhaled. Bustling surroundings, chipper strangers, brooding bystanders filled the familiar backdrop that was her life. At times, she would immerse herself eagerly into the crowd of new faces but after each encounter, she couldn't help but feel as though she had done this before. Though their features would be different from previous acquaintances, the conversation would always render the same result, which depressed her usually exuberant motivation. A swelling sense of boredom tinged her every being more and more with each waking day, slowly driving her to the brink of insanity. True, she wasn't one that often encouraged change but today, change was something she desperately craved.
She shivered as she opened the door to the establishment responsible for taking five years of her life. She was, of course, grateful for the opportunity to work here since it kept her from having to live on the streets and paid enough for her to be able to pursue further education in culinary arts practices; but the green-eyed woman could no longer muster the same excitement that she used to have. The table arrangements, staff and even the array of condiments at the counter remained in the same distinct spot she had remembered seeing them when she had first arrived and she imagined that they would remain so long into the future. Her ambitions seemed to evade her present state, her mind constantly fixated on the possibility that this may be the extent of her achievements in her lifetime. Sure, she knew that if she was unhappy with her life then she should work to make it better but when she came to that part…she could hardly recognize a way to accomplish this. Her lifelong dream to some day buy her own restaurant had lost its luster somewhere along the way and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't revive her old determination to make it happen.
To be honest, after high school she wasn't sure she wanted to be invested in maintaining a profitable restaurant. Well, at least not yet. She wanted to venture out into the world, see what foreign lands had to offer a thriving young graduate like herself. Pictures of world wonders and infamous tourists sites flooded the walls of her quaintly furnished apartment. Oh what she would give to be able to see these things one day! A small smile crept difficultly at the corner of her lips but was quickly denied as the realization of her current predicament overturned her joy. She didn't have the funds needed to do what it is she wanted.
She rummaged through her pockets for the black ballpoint pen and scratched at the pinned up paper in the kitchen. 'Kino, Makoto Check-in: 8 A.M.'. With a disheveled conscience, she tied on her white apron and made her way to the well-used appliances.
"Mornin Mako-chan!" A young bright-eyed blonde greeted. Makoto returned a smile.
"Morning Kisa," she said. The said girl propped her head on her arms as she observed the auburn-haired chef she had come to grow appreciative of. Lately, Makoto had been aloof. So she had been this way for the past couple months but just recently, she seemed to display it much more openly now which Kisa was unsure if the brunette realized it.
"Miyachi-san was wondering if you'd be willing to do deliveries today since Sione called in sick." Makoto's head immediately rose at this revelation.
"Sure," she agreed. Deliveries weren't exactly the favorite call of duty to most due to the fact that most recipients were impatient and rude when you got there but Makoto didn't feel like staying in the kitchen for another day. "Who would be in the kitchen?" she asked before fully committing to the job.
Kisa shrugged as she was now sorting through a stack of old orders. "I think Miyachi-san said something about coming in himself to cook since he hasn't had much to do as of late."
Makoto grinned, her joy that she was able to do something different for a change displacing her current melancholy. A rush of anticipation washed through her as she contemplated the minute turn of events. Her subconscious secretly scoffed at her sudden influx of delight as she awaited her replacement chef. Sure enough, the stubby figure of her overly generous boss came stocking through the swinging doors of his enterprise.
"It's a pleasure seeing you Miyachi-san," Makoto couldn't help but greet him with a broad smile. Though her embarrassment was consistently knocking on her inhibitions, she could not hide her pure excitement.
"Mako-chan," the short balding man greeted enthusiastically. He hobbled entertainingly towards her as she bowed. "Has Kisa-chan asked already?"
Makoto bobbed her head fervently "Hai."
Her boss nodded. "I know its not the greatest thing to have to do and I ought to fire Sione for all the trouble he's been giving me but with him being the only person willing to take on the job its difficult to just release him. If you don't want to-"
"Don't be silly Miyachi-san, I would be happy to do the deliveries for you," she interrupted, her lovable stocky boss looking up in surprise.
"Really?" he asked. Makoto just nodded in response. His grin stretched from ear to ear, a great weigh seemingly being lifted from his shoulders. "You don't know how happy this makes me Mako-chan, I am truly grateful."
"It's no trouble sir," she said handing him his long unseen apron. His heart swelled with admiration for the tall brunette. Since the first day he met her, he knew that she was something special. He had expected her to be like the other employees of the past…snooty, obnoxious, rude and disobedient but when she walked in, she shined like no other, her politeness drastically differentiable from her outward appearance. With her determination and skill in the kitchen he was certain that one day all her dreams would come true if she continued to believe in herself. The acquired love he had for her surmounted well enough to that of a love that a father had for his only daughter. He sure had a huge soft spot for this one.
"Thank you Mako-chan." He stood proudly at her acceptance and handed the addresses for the deliveries over to her. "Be sure to be careful while you're out there."
Makoto shook her head up and down as she read the addresses. The specially prepared packages were neatly seated on the countertop of the diner. With an appreciative smile, she picked it up and headed out. The busy streets appeared translucent upon her arrival. Though she had known these roads as well as she knew the kitchen of Miyachi-san's diner, she felt inexplicably rejuvenated. Her shoulders were held confidently as she wove through the crowds in search for her first client.
The audacious skyscraper protruded endlessly towards the bright blue sky, its magnificence doing nothing less than awing the exhilarated brunette. All these years of living here, she never seemed to notice this building once. She blushed at the thought. What use was it to mar her walls with pictures of amazing views in foreign lands when she had yet to even marvel at the sites near her home? She shook off the thought and continued into the building. The inside matched the outside perfectly. The glossed marble floors reflected clearly the shimmering windows of the building and the people in it. It was like stepping into a new world. Makoto looked around in amazement at the open spaces and well dressed inhabitants. So this is what it feels like to walk the halls of a top rated company, she droned. She imagined that Rei and Setsuna would probably experience this daily due to their heightened aptitude in subjects that would intertwine with this type of lifestyle.
"Excuse me ma'am." A man in a navy blue uniform sporting a shiny gold badge had interrupted her reverie. "Can I help you?"
For the first time, Makoto noticed her underdressed presence. While women walked in their pencil skirts and ironed blouses, she donned a knee-length black skirt and a loosely fitted green turtleneck with the sleeves scrunched up to her elbows. Her cheeks momentarily flushed at her realization.
"I'm sorry sir," she muttered. "I'm supposed to drop this off to the thirteenth floor."
The security guard bobbed his head in contemplation as he looked at the box in her hands. "Alright," he said. "The elevator is just over there." Makoto's eyes followed in the direction that he pointed and she nodded graciously. Surprisingly, not many people were boarding the metal clad transporters. With a shrug, she awaited the arrival of a vacant steel room. The resonating DING pulled her attention as the doors slid open. To her surprise, a woman suddenly appeared behind her entering as she pushed the button reading thirteen. For an untold reason, Makoto started shifting uncomfortably.
What's wrong with me? She cringed as she felt her senses screaming for her to be alert. She hadn't felt this way in a long time and she equated that it could possibly be due to the fact that she hadn't been in an elevator in a while so her body was protesting, but somehow it didn't convince her. She glanced over to the woman beside her and shook her head. There was nothing unusual about her, and she didn't appear to be at all threatening. Makoto frowned. Beads of sweat formulated disapprovingly on her brow, her mind scolding her body for being so resistant to her pleas to calm down.
"Kino, Makoto?"
The brunette's ears perked at the mention of her name, her body exalting in 'hah I told you something wasn't right!' Makoto gulped, her mind still unwilling to accept that she could be in any line of danger.
"Yes," she replied hesitantly.
"Perfect."
Makoto immediately regretted the admission as she felt the steel contraption screech to a halt. Makoto gripped nervously to the metal bar beside her and started jabbing incessantly with her index at the buttons.
"Don't be afraid Kino-san," she heard the woman speak. Growing irritation consumed her as she ignored the stranger's advice.
"Don't be afraid?" she cried. "I'm stuck in a frickin elevator!" Every movie she had ever seen involving stalling elevators seemed to flood her mind unceremoniously. Each resulted in a huge crash of which only the protagonist and his newly found love would survive. And being as she was in no way involved with a bulking masculine ex-soldier hero, she was sure that she would not make it out of this elevator alive if it chose to take a regretful plunge.
"It has been stopped for a reason."
Makoto's body tensed at the simple phrase. Her eyes seemed to glower in anticipation as her crouching figure stood upright. She remained with her back towards the unknown woman in deliberation. Somehow, she expected this woman's revelation was a hint to something greater than just a simple malfunction or test of elevator cables. Her mind raced with possibilities, each inadequately supplementing her answer. Who was this woman? She didn't trigger Makoto's sixth sense so she couldn't be included in the experiences of her past. She winced. Then what did she want from her?
"The elevator will resume its course as soon as our business here is complete," the woman explained.
"Business?" Makoto questioned. Her stomach churned in uncertainty as she heard this. She traced back as far as she could and couldn't fathom in the slightest what she could have done to deserve this. The woman nodded.
"You have been chosen Kino, Makoto to take part in Operation Metempsychosis under the Fire Lotus organization's careful supervision. We've selected a particular group of people to undergo rigorous training in battlefield combat and piloting to counter an uprising tyrant known strictly by a name that evokes fear in all those who know of it. Our enemy, has infiltrated our headquarters, annihilated our greatest assets and continues to wreak havoc on our territory and have extended threats to the entire country. Do you accept the call to join our efforts in protecting civilians from this menace?"
Makoto's closed her eyes in disdain. "Look," she started still facing away from the stranger. "I'm sorry to hear about your problems that you're having at your organization but I didn't sign up to join anyone so I would appreciate it if you just turned on the elevator again and let me get back to doing my job."
The green-eyed brunette arched an inquisitive eyebrow at the silence that followed. Curiously, she turned to see if the woman was still there. A click rendered her body motionless, the black steel pointed at her eliciting small tremors of anxiety from Makoto.
"What're you doing?" Makoto fumed. The woman stood expressionless, her charcoal eyes trained on her target.
"If you will not accept, then I have no choice but to silence you." Makoto's pulsating heart rate moved her to action. In a whir of movement, she somehow found herself pinning the unknown woman to the ground with the gun thrown in the corner.
"I see now why they chose you." Makoto seemed sickened by her statement. Who was 'they' and how did they know about her? By the sound of it, they seemed to be trying to stir up a war of which she wanted no part in. She had barely recovered completely from the greatest battle of her life, she didn't need to be involved in another one.
"What do you want from me?" She hissed, guilt conflicting with her current situation. This woman was in no way equipped to be able to counter her attack and for this she didn't feel right pinning her to the ground. Although this woman had pointed a gun at her, she knew that it was just an ornament intended to instill her with fear to make up for the girl's insufficient physical strength.
"You." Makoto could no longer handle the culpability. She released the woman and hastily snatched up the gun in the corner. Her concerns were confirmed with the single syllable that seemed to resonate in her ears. "You." She grimaced. In the small area available, she paced up and down.
"My orders were specific," the woman took the opportunity to speak. "If you will not accept this call, then I must make you accept it."
"And how will you do that?" Makoto retorted in disbelief. In a mere second she was able to take her gun and pin her to the ground so her power was pretty much nonexistent in the presence of the Amazon warrior.
"The elevator cables are scheduled to be cut in three minutes if I do not report your willingness to join Operation Metempsychosis. Should you accept then I will call it off. If you try to escape after accepting the call from the Fire Lotus then the three snipers currently surrounding Miyachi-san's diner are to open fire." The relaxed tone in her voice irked the now panicked Makoto. Was this really happening? She woke up this morning complaining that her life had grown dull and now it appeared that someone had humorously intervened.
"So what do you say Kino-san, do you accept?" The woman stood dauntless before her, the resigned emotion in her eyes leaving Makoto convinced that she meant every word she said. "Well?"
"Okay," Makoto's head was hung low, her conscience fully aware that she would regret this day. "I accept."
Ah! I know its so horrible that I should get another idea for another story when I have yet to even come close to completing the ones I started years ago =/ But I couldn't help it. Ugh, it's a terrible habit that I have yet to fix sorry. My idea for this story is to make it a Mako/Heero fic but hah hopefully I can keep the steam going and complete my older stories before working more on this one. Thanks for reading and I hope you are not too angry that I would start another story without yet finishing the other ones. I was hoping Disaster was the last of my new stories but I guess I was wrong ^^: Review if you please! Suggestions and constructive criticism is always welcomed and appreciated.
JPandS