Author's Note: I do so love writing about these characters! This is just a short story set after Gundam SEED Destiny.
Hot Conversation
It was on a hot, humid evening that Lacus and Cagalli chose to spend their few ilde moments lounging on a balcony overlooking the coastline of Orb. The sound of rushing waves and the meagre sea breeze did nothing to cool them down. Even as she sipped her glass of ice water, Cagalli could already feel sweat begin to trickle down her back. It was a hot evening. Well, compared to the desert temparatures she had gotten used to during her travels, this was only lukewarm, but stifling, nonetheless. A stiflingly hot evening fit for stiflingly hot conversation.
She could not remember exactly how they had stumbled onto the topic, but before she knew, they were talking about things Cagalli had never dreamed of discussing with anyone, not even in private! Maybe it had been the way Lacus kept thumbing the glittering diamond ring nestled lovingly onto the fourth finger of her left hand... Maybe it had been the dreamy look in her friend's eyes as she obviously sat there daydreaming of her brand new husband, Kira Yamato. A newly wed husband, who, incidentally, was Cagalli's little brother!
She felt her cheeks heat up. Somehow, thinking of Kira that way made this conversation all the more uncomfortable...
"I know it's still a little early to talk about babies, but... how many kids do you want?" she had blurted out thoughtlessly, never suspecting that an innocent question like that could lead to such a perilous topic.
Lacus's eyes held a mischievous sparkle as she smoothly replied: "As many as I can bear!"
Cagalli began to doubt that the weather had anything to do with the sudden heat wave that raced up into her cheeks, but she managed to sip her ice water calmly as she let Lacus carry on.
"Kira would want many, many children... He would want to be there when every one of them is born," Cagalli was proud that she only managed to splutter at that, instead of spraying ice water all over the tile floor as Lacus continued to relay her fantasy, "to hold them in his protective embrace as a sanctuary of welcome in this wide and wicked world of man."
Lacus sure had a vivid imagination... In fact, this image was getting way too vivid for Cagalli! She could not - did not want to - imagine her kid brother catching babies the moment they emerged from--
"He'd probably faint at the first sight of... of anything...!" she choked out. She was not so sure she would not do so herself, if this carried on for much longer!
Lacus gave a melodious chuckle and her blue eyes twinkled merrily. You would never suspect that Cagalli had just properly trampled her little romantic daydream... such as it was.
"And what about you and Athrun?" the pink-haired beauty asked mischievously, practically without pause.
Cagalli almost fell off her chair in shock. That pretty doll's face was nothing but a facade! Why, this woman did not have a shred of decency in her! How could she talk about her and Athrun that way when they weren't even together...!
Still, it felt as if her bare left ringfinger was burning... Burning with the memory of her beloved Athrun's ring that had once adorned it. She had promised herself that she would not be selfish... That she would let him go! That Athrun Zala would be a prisoner no longer!
And yet... He accepted her chains of his own free will.
Even after she told him straight out that her country would always come first... Oh, how that lie had scorched her tongue! The look in his eyes had told her that he knew it for a lie. Even after she had sent him away... She sent him on secret errands as far away from her as possible, and yet... Whenever she turned a corner, he was there - her silent protector. And his eyes... They glowed so brightly with the pain of being pushed away countless times that she sometimes wondered how he could still stand the sight of her. Yet at the same time, those very eyes overflowed with devotion for her alone. She could not fathom why he would look at her so trustingly, while he carried all that pain inside his chest.
How that trusting look in his eyes pained her...
Staring into her glass, she could almost see his eyes there, staring up at her.
"He would most definitely faint," Lacus stated judiciously, thoughtfully tapping a delicate fingernail against the empty glass in her hand.
This time, Cagalli did spray a good amount of ice water all over the floor.
Lacus Clyne was a woman full of surprises.
"H-How can you be so sure!?" she demanded, and only just managed not to shake her fist at the pink princess.
"Because I've seen it," her pink companion said quietly.
Involuntarily, Cagalli felt her blood begin to boil. Lacus had actually seen Athrun faint!? And... even more unthinkable... Athrun was present during the birth of a baby!? If Lacus had-- No, that was impossible! Cagalli would have heard something about this before now! She would have! There was no way Lacus would have let Kira marry her if she was somehow--
"That's horse hooey!" she finally burst out. "How could you have seen-- I mean, where would Athrun--"
Just then, she realized that the other woman was enjoying her tirade. Something was amiss here. Lacus would never say anything that would purposefully hurt someone. And Lacus could use ambiguity to turn truth and logic both on their heads!
"Oh my, did you misunderstand?" Lacus giggled softly.
"Spit it out!" Cagalli threatened.
"It happened while Athrun and I were still engaged..." she began. At a sour look from Cagalli, the pink-haired girl cleared her throat and hurriedly skipped over those details. "Anyway, while we were out for a stroll in the gardens, we came across a cat..."
"A cat?" Cagalli parroted in disbelief. She knew where this was going, and she could not even begin to imagine it!
"She was having a sizable litter of kittens, you see," Lacus elaborated. "And she was having trouble. She was in danger of dying, herself, if she could not muster up enough strength to free all the babies."
"And then... what happened?" Despite herself, Cagalli leaned forward with interest, enjoying this story more than she probably should have.
"Well, actually it was Athrun who discovered her," Lacus admitted. "He did not recognize the cries for those of a cat, and he thought someone might be in danger. He told me to stay back. He then sneaked up on the cat, turned white as a sheet and fainted! He was out until after the vet came to help the poor cat."
Smiling like a lovesick goose, Cagalli savoured the image of young Athrun having a weak stomach for just a little longer, then realized that the prospect of having his children did not at all seem unattractive... With a wicked grin, she confided: "You know what, I also want tons of babies one day!"
Lacus widened her eyes, clapped her hands together and laughed in delight.
"And I want Athrun to experience that with me... Just to see if I can get him to stop fainting!"
With that, the two girls burst into giggles, clutching their sides at the thought of fully grown Athrun having a weak stomach!
---
Kira stood very, very still, listening from his position just beside the doorway. By the sound of it, Lacus was making progress with Cagalli. His twin wanted to be the best ruler Orb had ever seen, and she was good at it... But she was gradually turning herself to stone by denying her own feelings. A ruler of stone usually had an iron fist. And he did not want his sister to turn into a cold, hollow shell of her former, fiery self.
He was beginning to blush a bit. He had not expected the conversation to be quite so... straightforward. Gingerly, he fingered the golden band around his finger. Marriage was no laughing matter, and neither were children, especially during the difficult times their world faced at the moment. But Kira was willing to give it a try. He was prepared to make a new future by learning from the mistakes of the past. He was nodding solemnly to himself when just the wrong person came trudging up the stairs on his way to the balcony!
"A-Athrun!" he stammered, hoping to distract his childhood friend long enough for the conversation to take a more... decent twist. He could not allow Athrun to know what he and Lacus were planning. He would only try to stop them, no matter that they were trying to help both Athrun and Cagalli.
Athrun's eyebrows climbed up his forehead.
"Kira!" the dark-haired Coordinator scolded, sounding scandalized. Kira felt the blood drain from his face. "Don't tell me you were eavesdropping on the girls!" Kira's spine relaxed a bit - he had not realized it was as stiff as a fence post. At least Athrun did not know the real reason behind Kira's presence here.
"N-No, I wasn't! Honest!" Kira replied, affecting wide-eyed innocence. Then, with a sneaky grin, he added: "Wanna know what they were talking about?"
"Of course you w-- What were they talking about?" Athrun asked, then looked surprised that the question had popped out of his own mouth.
"They were talking about having babies!" Kira reported with a grin.
Athrun promptly fainted.
The End!
Author's Note: I just had a little fun with the characters to help me get my feeling back. I hope you all like it!