Karina couldn't sleep.
Kicking away her sheets, she thought "If the weather is controlled by computers, why can't it be the same temperature year-round?" She had pulled up her long, blonde hair into a bun, and changed into shorts and a tanktop, but nothing helped.
"Maybe a little walk in the night?" she thought, with a little mischevious smile. She couldn't believe her sister never knew what she did at night. It was so simple, especially with the orphanage being too lazy to check on them and the house.
Karina and her big sister Mea had been orphans as long as she could remember. She never thought of herself as an orphan.
"Why am I an orphan when I still have family?" she always thought to herself.
Once Mea had her 18th birthday, she couldn't stay at the orphanage, so she got a job and made enough money to buy a small apartment. The orphanage was still supposed to check on them once a month, but they seemed to have forgotten about poor little Mea and Karina Nove.
"Arrivederci, sorella," she whispered, and then proceeded to open the window. How lucky she was to live in this apartment building, made of bricks with some sticking out in architectural beauty. She kissed her little pug Piccolo and shooed her into the hallway. The named fit them both well, they were both "small." Karina closed the door and then dropped out the window.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The old stone irritated her hands, but after so many nights of sneaking out and meeting friends, her hands had developed an immunity towards it.
Karina knew very well that she couldn't stay out in the open. When the Operation of the Zodiac gained control of colony L9, they began patrolling the streets like every person was a criminal, every 24 hour coffee shop had a murder waiting to happen.
At night, without being properly dressed and looking to hide, there was only one place she knew to go. A place that could bring out the happy memories of her time in Italy in the city of Cagliari.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"A park? That's it? Well, it will have to do," thought the 15 year old gundam pilot.
He didn't know what would happen on this mission, since it wasn't very long after OZ came into control. They always kept an eye out in the first months, and then backed off. But, a mission was a mission, and if he backed out, Wufei would have his "weak, onna-like hide."
Swiftly, the young Arabian lowered the tall gundam into a patch of grass between the trees. He moved the gundam down from sight so much, it looked almost like it was sleeping.
"I'll be back Sandrock," he whispered while he pulled on a black cloak. On these night missions, it was not good to have platinum blonde hair. The base was only a few minutes away, but with the officers roaming around, it could seem like hours.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Karina skimmed the edge of the park, trying to keep hidden, but not enough that she would lose her way in the dark. She stopped at a tree and tapped it.
"Hollow plastic," she mused, scorning at the fakeness of the whole colony. It was enough to make a person wonder if they really existed, or were just a plastic figure in a little girl's doll house.
She turned her head suddenly. Did she just see a flash of gold? She looked towards the direction it came from, and could just barely make out a dark figure.
The sound of car brakes reached her ear. What would a car be doing at the park in the middle of the night? Why would a person come to see plastic trees when you could barely see the hands in front of your face?
"You sure you head something, Loy? You know it's too early for them to be here."
"Yeah, I'm sure. Heard the leaves rustle, too big a sound to be made by a person."
Karina froze, and could see the figure stop suddenly, and turn around.
"We should get some more guys and search the area. You never know what you can find when you least expect it."
Karina was suddenly terrified, people would think she was trying to get something out of the OZ base, being out in the middle of the night like this. She glanced up at the figure. What was it doing, looking at her and then back towards the forest.
Well, she'd rather face OZ as some ditzy teenager than some sophisticated killing machine trying to destroy the whole colony.
Karina stepped into view of the OZ officers, and cleared her throat.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Excuse me."
The officers turned around at the voice, hands about to grab their guns, until they saw the origin of the voice.
"Gomen~~ I was out with my friends and I got lost in the woods!~~ Could I have a lift home? *insert sweet, innocent smile*" Karina could hardly believe she was saying such things, she was the second top student of the school, and only beaten by a point or two by some prep. Lost her ass, she knew this park like the back of her hand in the daylight.
The OZ men stared at her like she was a lunatic for a second, and that's how she was acting. Then, they broke into a smile. It was only some lost girl. A cute one, too.
"Shit, kid, we were about to shoot you. We'll give you a ride, with all that "help those in need" crap."
"How did a guy like him become a member of one of the most powerful organizations in the world?!" Karina thought, forcing a smile.
The soldier apparently named Loy stepped forward.
"Hey kid, did you hear anything while you were hear? Something in the trees?"
"Um... oh, that was just me. I climbed a tree to see where I was, and the trees were so close together and brances started rattling."
"I told you Loy, they won't be here yet. They'll wait until they think we're not watching them!" the older officer frowned at his partner and pushed him aside.
"Aha. A discovery," she thought. "'Scuse me.. but who is 'they?'" Karina asked with a typical curious, ditzy teenager look.
"Oh, that's nothing to worry your pretty little head over, babe. By the way, my name is Simon Tizenhárom."
"My name is Karina Nove," she said, grimacing in her mind, what kind of name was Tizenharom?
"Just hop in, and I'll get you home," Simon said while opening the passenger door to the patrol car. Karina stepped into the car, and caught a glimpse of the figure she'd seen.
"My eyes must be bad," she thought, shaking off what she thought she had seen. A wink.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Why did she do that?" he thought while quietly running inbetween the trees. "She could've run away, could've let them search the woods, could've let them find Sandrock, and then they'd..." he shuddered at the thought. Sandrock was his only real friend now. Some might think that he would find Rasid a friend. But that was years ago. Once he had taken over as captain for that one battle, those people changed into servants, just obeying his every command.
His parents? No, father was too busy with work. Mother had died giving birth to him, even though she knew she would die. His sisters? There were too many, it was hard to get close to one or two out of twenty-nine with all these missions. Trowa? "Emotions" was a foreign word to that guy. You could have a one-sided conversation with that guy, but he wouldn't notice.
Sandrock was his only real friend.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Karina waved nervously at the patrol car as it drove away.
"No need to wake sorella-chan," she thought while she planned in the car. She shuddered as she remembered the drive to the apartment building with that oddly-named guy.
"What does he think I am, some desperate, horny teenager?!" she muttered as she ran to the back of the building once the car was out of sight. She climbed back up the bricks, and flopped herself down on her bed.
She thought back to what had happened. Who was that person in black? Who was "they" the officers kept talking about? She sighed, and supposed that maybe Simon was right, she shouldn't worry about it. She was ready to sleep, when she heard a knock at her bedroom door.
She snapped up, but waited a bit before getting up and opening the door.
"What is it Mea?" she asked with a forced yawn. Her older sister stood in the doorway holding Piccolo in her arms.
"How could you sleep with this one scratching at your door for the last hour?" she sighed, "Can't you keep her in your room?" A soft smile crossed Karina's face.
"Imagine sleeping with that in your room," she said. Her sister chuckled and nodded, and then left to go back to her own room.
"Maa, you can't leave me alone for an hour, can you, Piccolo?" She was answered with a little yap and a lick on the face. She put her little dog on the foot of her bed, and lay down on her bed, trying to concentrate on her test in the morning.
Something crinkled under her head on the pillow. She sat up and found a note on the pillow.
Thanks.
- QRWMSG04L9AC195
Kicking away her sheets, she thought "If the weather is controlled by computers, why can't it be the same temperature year-round?" She had pulled up her long, blonde hair into a bun, and changed into shorts and a tanktop, but nothing helped.
"Maybe a little walk in the night?" she thought, with a little mischevious smile. She couldn't believe her sister never knew what she did at night. It was so simple, especially with the orphanage being too lazy to check on them and the house.
Karina and her big sister Mea had been orphans as long as she could remember. She never thought of herself as an orphan.
"Why am I an orphan when I still have family?" she always thought to herself.
Once Mea had her 18th birthday, she couldn't stay at the orphanage, so she got a job and made enough money to buy a small apartment. The orphanage was still supposed to check on them once a month, but they seemed to have forgotten about poor little Mea and Karina Nove.
"Arrivederci, sorella," she whispered, and then proceeded to open the window. How lucky she was to live in this apartment building, made of bricks with some sticking out in architectural beauty. She kissed her little pug Piccolo and shooed her into the hallway. The named fit them both well, they were both "small." Karina closed the door and then dropped out the window.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The old stone irritated her hands, but after so many nights of sneaking out and meeting friends, her hands had developed an immunity towards it.
Karina knew very well that she couldn't stay out in the open. When the Operation of the Zodiac gained control of colony L9, they began patrolling the streets like every person was a criminal, every 24 hour coffee shop had a murder waiting to happen.
At night, without being properly dressed and looking to hide, there was only one place she knew to go. A place that could bring out the happy memories of her time in Italy in the city of Cagliari.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"A park? That's it? Well, it will have to do," thought the 15 year old gundam pilot.
He didn't know what would happen on this mission, since it wasn't very long after OZ came into control. They always kept an eye out in the first months, and then backed off. But, a mission was a mission, and if he backed out, Wufei would have his "weak, onna-like hide."
Swiftly, the young Arabian lowered the tall gundam into a patch of grass between the trees. He moved the gundam down from sight so much, it looked almost like it was sleeping.
"I'll be back Sandrock," he whispered while he pulled on a black cloak. On these night missions, it was not good to have platinum blonde hair. The base was only a few minutes away, but with the officers roaming around, it could seem like hours.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Karina skimmed the edge of the park, trying to keep hidden, but not enough that she would lose her way in the dark. She stopped at a tree and tapped it.
"Hollow plastic," she mused, scorning at the fakeness of the whole colony. It was enough to make a person wonder if they really existed, or were just a plastic figure in a little girl's doll house.
She turned her head suddenly. Did she just see a flash of gold? She looked towards the direction it came from, and could just barely make out a dark figure.
The sound of car brakes reached her ear. What would a car be doing at the park in the middle of the night? Why would a person come to see plastic trees when you could barely see the hands in front of your face?
"You sure you head something, Loy? You know it's too early for them to be here."
"Yeah, I'm sure. Heard the leaves rustle, too big a sound to be made by a person."
Karina froze, and could see the figure stop suddenly, and turn around.
"We should get some more guys and search the area. You never know what you can find when you least expect it."
Karina was suddenly terrified, people would think she was trying to get something out of the OZ base, being out in the middle of the night like this. She glanced up at the figure. What was it doing, looking at her and then back towards the forest.
Well, she'd rather face OZ as some ditzy teenager than some sophisticated killing machine trying to destroy the whole colony.
Karina stepped into view of the OZ officers, and cleared her throat.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Excuse me."
The officers turned around at the voice, hands about to grab their guns, until they saw the origin of the voice.
"Gomen~~ I was out with my friends and I got lost in the woods!~~ Could I have a lift home? *insert sweet, innocent smile*" Karina could hardly believe she was saying such things, she was the second top student of the school, and only beaten by a point or two by some prep. Lost her ass, she knew this park like the back of her hand in the daylight.
The OZ men stared at her like she was a lunatic for a second, and that's how she was acting. Then, they broke into a smile. It was only some lost girl. A cute one, too.
"Shit, kid, we were about to shoot you. We'll give you a ride, with all that "help those in need" crap."
"How did a guy like him become a member of one of the most powerful organizations in the world?!" Karina thought, forcing a smile.
The soldier apparently named Loy stepped forward.
"Hey kid, did you hear anything while you were hear? Something in the trees?"
"Um... oh, that was just me. I climbed a tree to see where I was, and the trees were so close together and brances started rattling."
"I told you Loy, they won't be here yet. They'll wait until they think we're not watching them!" the older officer frowned at his partner and pushed him aside.
"Aha. A discovery," she thought. "'Scuse me.. but who is 'they?'" Karina asked with a typical curious, ditzy teenager look.
"Oh, that's nothing to worry your pretty little head over, babe. By the way, my name is Simon Tizenhárom."
"My name is Karina Nove," she said, grimacing in her mind, what kind of name was Tizenharom?
"Just hop in, and I'll get you home," Simon said while opening the passenger door to the patrol car. Karina stepped into the car, and caught a glimpse of the figure she'd seen.
"My eyes must be bad," she thought, shaking off what she thought she had seen. A wink.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Why did she do that?" he thought while quietly running inbetween the trees. "She could've run away, could've let them search the woods, could've let them find Sandrock, and then they'd..." he shuddered at the thought. Sandrock was his only real friend now. Some might think that he would find Rasid a friend. But that was years ago. Once he had taken over as captain for that one battle, those people changed into servants, just obeying his every command.
His parents? No, father was too busy with work. Mother had died giving birth to him, even though she knew she would die. His sisters? There were too many, it was hard to get close to one or two out of twenty-nine with all these missions. Trowa? "Emotions" was a foreign word to that guy. You could have a one-sided conversation with that guy, but he wouldn't notice.
Sandrock was his only real friend.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Karina waved nervously at the patrol car as it drove away.
"No need to wake sorella-chan," she thought while she planned in the car. She shuddered as she remembered the drive to the apartment building with that oddly-named guy.
"What does he think I am, some desperate, horny teenager?!" she muttered as she ran to the back of the building once the car was out of sight. She climbed back up the bricks, and flopped herself down on her bed.
She thought back to what had happened. Who was that person in black? Who was "they" the officers kept talking about? She sighed, and supposed that maybe Simon was right, she shouldn't worry about it. She was ready to sleep, when she heard a knock at her bedroom door.
She snapped up, but waited a bit before getting up and opening the door.
"What is it Mea?" she asked with a forced yawn. Her older sister stood in the doorway holding Piccolo in her arms.
"How could you sleep with this one scratching at your door for the last hour?" she sighed, "Can't you keep her in your room?" A soft smile crossed Karina's face.
"Imagine sleeping with that in your room," she said. Her sister chuckled and nodded, and then left to go back to her own room.
"Maa, you can't leave me alone for an hour, can you, Piccolo?" She was answered with a little yap and a lick on the face. She put her little dog on the foot of her bed, and lay down on her bed, trying to concentrate on her test in the morning.
Something crinkled under her head on the pillow. She sat up and found a note on the pillow.
Thanks.
- QRWMSG04L9AC195