Differentia
Part Two-Help: Wanted
About a month after my initial meeting with Duo, I sat at a computer, not knowing what to type. He said to e-mail him if I needed to talk, and I sure do. Blankly, I stared at the glowing screen for a few minutes and just wrote: Hi Duo, you said to e-mail if I needed to talk and I sure do. You still have my number, right? -Relena I decided that was good enough and clicked send. Once I was done there, I shut the computer down and just wandered around the mansion, waiting for Duo's call. I hoped he could call me back soon...
"Did your father tell you anything before he passed?" That was my mother talking to me. She was arranging some flowers in a room I happened to walk through, in a pathetic attempt to clear my head. All of my thoughts had been rather fuzzy the past few days. Information overload, I guess. I suspect Mother was trying to keep her mind off of my father's recent death. Relieved that I was facing away from her, I said "Not really," as nonchalantly as I could. Tears were threatening to over take me soon. Without really thinking about it, I threw my arms around my foster mother's neck.
"You ARE my mother!" I shouted, hugging her. "Mother," I whimpered, and she hugged me. It might not be biological, but she was the only mother I had ever known and that was good enough for me.
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I guess Duo must be busy, because he called me back after a few days. Most of the shock had worn off by then, but I still needed to talk to someone. I was hopeful that it was him when my phone rang, and was more than grateful to hear Duo say "What's up, Lena?"
"A lot, actually," I said with a nervous chuckle and walked outside into the gardens, where hopefully no one would over hear snippets of the conversation. "How much time do you have?"
"Not sure," he answered, "just say as much as you can, and I'll let you know when I have to leave, okay?" I nodded, but then remembered that this was a audio only transmission, and voiced my agreement. After that I was silent for a few moments, and Duo said "Just start from the beginning."
"I'm not really sure where the beginning is, it could be a few days ago, but then, it could be when I was a kid, too."
"What do ya mean?" Duo sounded a little alarmed.
I sighed. "My father died a few days ago," I said.
"I'm sorry," Duo said politely. "If it's any help, my parents are dead, too. I don't even remember them."
"Wow, that makes my problems seem so insignificant." I said.
"Aw, it's okay, if ya don't remember 'em, I figure, I can't miss 'em." Duo said.
"But aren't you lonely?" I asked him.
"Nah, I got people. So, what were you saying 'bout your dad?"
I know this is getting off track, but I can't tell you how grateful I am that Duo is in my life. He saved my life and has been there for me ever time I needed him since. Duo is just the kind of guy you can really count on. I don't think there is anyone who could ever possibly mean more to me than Duo. Even when the world is falling apart around him, he's always there to make other people smile.
Getting back to the conversation, I told Duo that my father had been the Vice Foreign Minister, and a bomb had exploded during a meeting he was attending. The bomb had been disgusted as a compact and a woman from OZ, (I later found out that her name was Lady Midii Une) 'accidentally' left on the conference table. I saw her leave it there, and not knowing it was dangerous, picked it up and brought it outside to her. She throw it back it through a window and it exploded.
I witnessed the whole thing and some OZ soldier started shooting at me. A of a sudden a van whizzed by and someone pulled me inside. My father was lying on a cot inside the van and we were being driven somewhere. I begged them to take us to a hospital, but the driver and other people refused. My father died lying on that cot.
I stopped speaking then, and I could hear Duo trying to say something, but not being able to get anything out. Knowing him as well as I do now, I'd say he was probably trying to make a joke to lighten the mood, but couldn't think of anything that wouldn't be completely insensitive. He's sweet like that.
I continued. As my father lay dying, he told me that I was not really his daughter, I was a member of the Peacecraft family, a monarchy that ruled the Sank Kingdom and worked so hard to promote absolute pacifism. When the Sank Kingdom fell, only two members of the family survived. My brother Milliardo and I. My father didn't know what happened to Milliardo, and then, as I screamed for him not to leave me, my foster father died.
But the story didn't end there. The people in the car drugged me then, and I collapsed. When I came to I was in a limo with a man with a claws instead of hands.
"Do you know what you have put into motion?" he asked me. I didn't know what he was taking about and told him so. But never fear, he explained it all to me in length.
"What did you do?" Duo breathed. My story had him on the edge of his seat.
"Heero Yuy died because of me," I said.
"Who?"
"The boy on the docks that night."
"So, his name's Heero," Duo mused.
"His name was Heero," I corrected. "He died that night. And the old man with clawed hands, he called himself Dr. J, was very upset."
"Were they family?" Duo asked.
"No, Dr. J trained Heero, he was a Gundam pilot, and his mission,-to free the colonies from the Earth that oppresses their people-was never completed. Who knows what will happen now. And it's my fault."
"He was a pilot?!? Shit, no wonder that suit of Gundamium was there. He must have been trying to destroy it."
"Duo, what are you taking about?" And then it dawned on me. "THAT'S WHY HE WANTED TO KILL ME!!"
"What?"
"Duo, the day before he died, I saw something falling from the sky that he climbed out of, and then I saw his face, and could have put him and the craft together in my mind. I could have identified him, so he wanted to eliminate me."
"He was a Gundam pilot, there should have been five. But because of us, there are only four."
"Huh? How do you know how many there are?"
Duo paused and then said: "I can trust, you right, Lena?"
"Absolutely."
"I am one, I am the pilot of the Gundam Deathsycthe. There was a battle yesterday, and I met some other Gundam pilots. One was referred to as 'Trowa' but other than that I don't know there names yet. OZ tried to trick us into assassinating the Earth Sphere Alliance's pacifists, but they managed to evacuated thanks to the last pilot to show up. He told us what was going on." We were both silent after that. "Hey, Queenie--"
"Queenie?"
"Well, if no one knows what happened to your brother and the rest of 'em are dead, then your the Queen of Sank by default. Anyway, if we can hook you and those other pacifists together, maybe you can help the colonies. Meanwhile, I'll keep on fightin' and the war will be over before it begins."
"War?" I asked.
"Not if Shinigami can help it! Next time I'm on Earth, I give ya a call, Queenie, and we'll see what's up then, okay?"
"Okay, Duo. Um, if you don't mind my asking, where are you right now?"
"L2, callin' from Deathsycthe. See ya." I heard a fizz that I took to meant Duo had shut down his communicator and hung up my cell phone. Now that I had gotten the whole thing out, and I knew there were other Gundam pilots to hopefully succeed where Heero didn't, the situation didn't seem so hopeless.
But, I still had one more question, that I think only I can answer: should I continue to live my life the way I have, or claim my birthright?
Disclaimers: I don't own anything having to with Gundam Wing and I'm not making any money off of this fic.
