A/N: Hello all. Meant to have this up last week, but a rather painful back injury put me out of comission for a few days. I did, however, have plenty of time to lie around and think of ideas. I'm hoping to post at least once a month, but don't hold me to that.

A special thanks to all those who have reviewed so far, you are my motivation.

Dear Lawyers, I own nothing. Go sue someone esle.

Ch. 2

Colony L-21544 (St. Thomas City)

Hilde let out a quiet groan as a beam of artificial sunlight managed to pierce the sweet darkness that was sleep. In protest she rolled over, reaching out for the familiar warmth of the bed's other occupant. Her eyes snapped open in confusion when her hand found empty space. Raising her head, she looked around the room and listened, wondering if Duo had simply gone to the restroom for a moment. It was Sunday morning, their one day off and, therefore, their one day to sleep in. While it wasn't unusual for Duo to be up before her (he was, surprisingly, a morning person), Sundays were the one day he refused to get out of bed before ten unless absolutely necessary. Double checking the clock on the nightstand, she confirmed that it was just before nine. Concern brought her fully awake when her lover didn't seem to be anywhere in the vicinity of the room.

Rolling out of bed and pulling on her robe, she padded out into the hall, wondering if she had slept through a call concerning the scrap yard, or worse, one of their friends.

Don't be silly, Hilde, she chided herself, you're not so deep a sleeper that you'd miss the phone ringing.

What Hilde didn't want to admit was that for the past month she had been putting so much work into the yard and exhausting herself that sleeping through a ringing phone was perfectly possible. She wanted to believe that it was because the yard was doing so much business that the extra work was necessary, but even she knew that was stretching the truth. They had a few employees now who were more than capable of handling the workload, but Hilde had been reluctant to delegate. She was distracting herself, and she knew it. The reason for this distraction was currently spread out on the kitchen table in front of Duo.

"Morning, babe," he said with a smile, only looking up from the file he was currently studying to offer a small smile and nod towards the counter. "I haven't been up that long, so coffee's fresh."

"Thanks," Hilde replied, pointedly ignoring the numerous files and papers scattered on the table as she made her way across the room. Grabbing the mug that Duo had left out for her, she poured her coffee and added sugar, savoring the scent before looking over her shoulder. "You're up awful early for a Sunday," she stated, noting that Duo had gone back to studying his file.

"Yeah," he said without looking up. "I've got a few more possible matches. Quatre also said that the facial recognition system will be up and running by Wednesday, and I want to get things ready."

Despite herself, Hilde grinned at her boyfriend's enthusiasm. While most people thought of Duo as flighty, those closest to him knew that he was intensely dedicated and focused on matters that interested him. This "family reunification" project had captured his full attention, and any time he wasn't working in the yard (or any time that was deemed as "theirs") he had been pouring through files and databases, doing what he could to piece together shattered families. She guessed that half the reason was because he was indeed a sucker for happy endings. She knew that the other half was for a darker, more personal reason. For Duo, this was a sort of penance. Being a Gundam pilot meant that he had been responsible for countless deaths and separations during the wars. With each family he reunited or brought closure to, a part of his soul was healed. Though the total so far was only a handful, his smile was growing more genuine, his sleep just a tad more peaceful. If only she could feel the same.

"Hilde?"

Snapped from her thoughts, Hilde looked over her shoulder to see a slight frown on Duo's face.

"Sorry," she hedged, "I'm not quite awake yet. Did you say something?"

Closing the file folder in his hand and placing it on the table, Duo turned in his chair to face her, his eyes searching hers for something she wasn't ready to face.

"You looked pretty lost in thought. You've been doing that a lot lately. Everything ok?"

Irritation flared in her. While he hadn't been straightforward in his inquiries regarding her feelings towards the project, Duo had brought up the matter (or at least tried to) at least once a day for the past month. She was about to snap at him when she caught the genuine concern in his violet eyes, and her anger died as quickly as it had come, morphing instead into tender affection for the young man in front of her.

"Just thinking, Duo, that's all." Noting his frown deepen, she redirected his attention. "So, who's up next in your project?" she asked, indicating the file he had just put down.

It was a poor diversion, and she could see that Duo wasn't fooled by it, but he turned and picked up the folder as she came to stand beside him, flipping it open to reveal two photos of a young man attached to military document providing the subject's biography. Hilde watched as he spread out a few other notes contained in the folder, some of which she noticed contained Duo's handwriting.

"Hilde, meet Jackson Billings," Duo announced, his tone taking on a lighter note. "He served in the Oz's 36th Engineering Battalion. His mother and brother filed the request, said that they had some kind of fight right before he was deployed to Space Combat Operations and haven't spoken since. He's not in the KIA or MIA files, so now it's just a matter of tracking him down. I got a positive hit on employment records in the L-2 cluster, so now all I need is a recent address." Duo was smiling broadly again, his enthusiasm picking up as he talked. "It's nice to find the live ones. The last few have been confirmation of death notices. Those aren't nearly as satisfying. If I'm lucky, I can reunite him and a few others with their families by Christmas…"

Hilde was only half listening, her focus was on the picture, and her thoughts once again in a far off place. Had she noticed Duo trail off in his rambling, she may have been able to keep him focused on his topic, but instead she was once again pulled from her thoughts by Duo calling her name.

"Babe, you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, just thinking." At his intense stare she continued, once again attempting to divert her lover's attention. "I hope you find them. A Christmas reunion would be wonderful."

This time, Duo wasn't so easily put off. "Hilde," he started, his tone hardening, "I've told you, if there's something about all this you want to talk about, someone you want to find…"

"Duo," she cut him off, "We've been over this, so please, drop it."

Hilde watched his jaw clench, an indication that he was fighting hard not to push the subject. Finally, he relented, easing back into his chair. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, he spoke, his tone lighter and more like the Duo she knew and loved.

"It's still kind of early. If we leave in the next half hour, we can beat the church crowds and have a nice breakfast at Mel's Diner. What do you say?" he asked.

Smiling, she bent and kissed his forehead, brushing his unruly bangs away from his eyes. "Sounds great, but I need a shower first."

Feeling a little better now that the subject of searches had been dropped, the petite woman strolled towards the hallway leading to their room. Feeling his eyes on her, she turned and, with a sly grin asked, "You coming, or what?"

Duo practically flew from his chair, files long forgotten. They were late for breakfast, but neither found that they minded the wait.

Colony L-21530 (New Ramstein)

Dirk Rheinhalt grunted in mild irritation as his knee began to complain about his current crouching position. Shifting his weight to his other side gave him minor relief as he once again focused on the portable generator he was currently attempting to fix. His relief was short lived as his other knee began to ache and he knew that the battle with his joints, and therefore the generator, was lost. Setting his ratchet in the toolbox by his foot, he took a moment to gather his strength before pushing himself into a standing position.

"It's a damned colony, everyone knows it, so why emulate Earth's fall so damn well?" he grumbled, rubbing at his sore right knee.

"Did you say something, Dirk?"

The older man glanced over his shoulder and saw a dark haired youth walking towards him with a box in his hands.

"Nothing important, Axel, just grumbling about the weather. These temperature fluxes are hell on an old man's joints."

The younger man grinned and shook his head. "You're not that old, Uncle."

"Old enough," Dirk grunted good naturedly. "Those the parts I sent you for over an hour ago?"

Axel had enough grace to look guilty as he handed over the parcel. "Sorry it took so long, but…well…"

"Johanna was working today, I take it?" Dirk grinned, and then laughed out loud at the young man's blush. "No worries. Put these in the parts shed and let's call it a day. I'd hate to be late for supper two days in a row."

With a nod, Axel hurried off to put the box away and lock up the shed for the night. Dirk watched his nephew's quick movements and envied his youth for a brief moment. Another twinge in his knee reminded him that the evening was only going to get colder. With a sigh, he reached for the cane leaning against the generator. He would have to start moving things inside the workshop for the upcoming simulated winter, a task that was as time consuming as it was inconvenient. He was drawn from his musing when Axel stepped up to him and nodded that he was ready to leave.

The walk from the small scrap yard and mechanical repair shop that was Dirk's livelihood to the home he shared with his sister and nephew was only a few blocks, and usually pleasant, but today he was unusually stiff, his damaged knee throbbing at each step, causing him to rely on the support of his cane more than usual. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Axel's slight frown, indicating that his nephew had noticed his discomfort. Choosing to ignore the concern, he limped along, finally reaching the modest white house he called home.

Stepping through the door, he was greeted by a rush of warmth, the smell of fresh bread, and a brown and white mutt named Krieger. Patting the dog's head affectionately, he winced as Axel shouted, "Mama! We're home!"

Dirk rapped the back of his nephew's head with his hand in disapproval. "Manners, boy. Eighteen and you still have none. A miracle your mother hasn't tossed you out on your ear."

The dark haired youth took the older man's reprimand in stride and headed towards the kitchen in search of food. "No hope for that one, Krieger," Dirk sighed, petting the dog once more before heading towards the smell of food.

Upon entering the room he stopped and observed his sister, Elena, the only family he had left, puttering around the kitchen and muttering to herself. Axel had apparently been tasked with setting the small table. Stiffly making his way over to his chair, Dirk sank into it with a grateful sigh. Not yet fifty, he was feeling much older than his years these days, and far from the man he had been a mere seven years ago, before he had been crippled and lost almost everything dear to him.

"Long day?"

Dirk looked up as a plate of food appeared before him and he grinned at his sister as she sat across from him. Rubbing at his short beard, he cast a sidelong look at his nephew before answering. "It would have been shorter if your son wasn't so…distracted…today. Something must have caught his fancy at the hardware store."

"Uncle!" Axel protested around a mouthful of food.

Elena chuckled at her son's reddening face, before giving him a mock glare. "Don't talk with your mouth full," she gently scolded.

"Eat your salad," Dirk added, laughing at the youth's grimace. "And no sneaking it to the dog, either. Krieger doesn't like tomatoes."

Chatter continued at the table for the duration of the meal, and soon enough it was time to clean up. Rising slowly to his feet, Dirk did the best he could to hide a grimace of pain before hobbling to the sink with his plate. As he turned, he was met with a pair of blue eyes, just a shade darker than his own, that were both accusing and sympathetic.

"Your leg is killing you," Elena stated flatly. "Go sit in the living room. Axel and I can finish cleaning up."
A wave of irritation hit him as his little sister all but ordered him to leave. "Don't coddle me, Elena. I'm not an invalid," he growled.

Elena sighed. "I know you're not, big brother, but I can tell you're hurting. If it makes you feel better, you can take care of breakfast in the morning."

"Deal," he grunted with a smirk. "Any chance I can get some coffee?"

"Spoiled brat," she muttered, flicking him with her dish towel. "Go sit, I'll see what I can do."

Dirk headed towards the small living room and the comfort of his recliner. As he settled into his favorite chair, he caught a glimpse of the newspaper on the side table. Earth and Colonies Unite, the main headline boasted. Combined Effort in Massive Community Outreach Program Leads to Closure, Reunions, the sub-headline continued. Dirk recalled hearing something about a joint project between Earth and the colonies a few weeks back from a client. Intrigued, he began reading the article, stopping just short of the end, a heavy weight having settled in the center of his chest.

"Quite an ambitious project, don't you think?" Elena commented softly, nodding to the paper as she handed him a steaming mug.

The elder sibling simply grunted in both acknowledgment and thanks, allowing silence to settle in the room. Dirk hoped that the silence would endure, but knowing his sister, he knew that the conversation was far from over. Sure enough, barely a minute passed before Elena spoke.

"I was thinking of volunteering for the project part-time, but it looks like for the moment, the only place in the L-2 cluster that will be operating will be on L-21544. I guess it wouldn't hurt to gather information and requests to send over there, though. Maybe…"

"Elena," Dirk cut her off in a low voice, "Whatever it is you're thinking, forget it."

"Dirk, I just thought-"

"Forget it, Elena," he growled, struggling to his feet.

Standing up and striding towards her brother, she stopped just in front of him, looking up into his bright blue eyes where she saw a mix of pain, anger, and fatigue. Elena's resolve faltered for a moment, but she was as stubborn as her brother, so she pressed on.

"Don't you want to know, Dirk? Don't you want to at least try and find out if she's okay? Don't you care?"

"Of course I do!" he roared, causing Elena to blink and step back in surprise. Dirk rarely yelled in anger, and his burst of emotion caught her off guard. Her breath caught as she met his eyes once more and saw the anguish there as he spoke in a calmer tone. "But what about her? What if she doesn't want to be found? What if she doesn't care? It's been almost seven years, Elena, five since the last war ended. If she wanted to be found, if she wanted to talk, to come home, don't you think she would have at least tried by now?"

"And what if she didn't know she could come home?" Elena growled, her voice wavering slightly.

A tense moment passed between brother and sister before Dirk looked away, cursing softly. A moment later he turned to head to his room with a muttered 'goodnight.'

Turning back towards the kitchen, Elena couldn't help but think, If only you knew how sorry he is, Hilde, how much he still loves you. If only you knew.

Just a special note: The 36th Engineering Batallion was my dad's unit in the U.S. Army in Vietnam (1968-1970).