Okay, I'm back. I am so sorry that this chapter took so long, (I swear, I'm still writing!). Aside from the fact that I have been drowning in school work, this was a really hard chapter to write. Seriously, despite being the shortest I've written in a while, it took me forever, reasons being that this one spends a lot of time in the heads of various people and I tried to make it as realistic as possible . . . especially this first part.
Anyway, hopefully I'll be back on track with my usual every two or three weeks. For those of you reading Mutually Assured Destruction, I needed a week off from that to finish this chapter and catch up on some other stuff, but it will be updated. Thank you for all the reviews, I absolutely loved them; I really enjoy all the constructive criticism and I'm so flattered by how many of you have taken the time to really think about this story and write to me about it.
And here I am ranting on and on like a lunatic again, sigh. Okay on to the next chapter, and I promise I'll be back soon. Enjoy!
Occam's Razor
Chapter Twelve – Footsteps to Follow
Tynan
- - - - -
The first thing that struck him was the smell; it wasn't a bad smell, he just couldn't place it. There didn't appear to be any signs of life but regardless, he called down the hall, not wanting to startle the apartment's occupant. As he continued down the hallway he ducked his head into the dark kitchen and to his shock discovered it contained a couch, a recliner, and several other pieces of furniture not usually found there. He also noted that for all the new additions the small kitchen table next to the window was gone.
Duo felt an odd sensation of curiosity and dread wash over him and again he called out to his friend. "Heero?"
He was met with silence as he kept walking, but came to a dead stop as he rounded the corner into the living room.
The sudden appearance of the furniture in the kitchen was quickly explained; all of Heero's usual fixtures had been moved out the room, the kitchen table was the only thing that had apparently replaced them. This however, was not what brought him to a screeching halt. The entire room had been practically wallpapered in paper of all kinds; official looking reports, both hand written and typed, pages that looked like interview transcripts, stills taken from security cameras, a large map of Brussels and next to it one of Europe and next to that one of the world, all covered with hand drawn rings and markings. Next to or near all of these were blank pieces of paper with what looked like Heero's hand writing all over them. Connecting all of these papers were colored lines drawn, in some cases, almost clear across the room, linking one intricate detail to the next.
The floor was littered with computer equipment and in the center sat a mass of silicone, metal, and blinking lights that Duo could only assume was a newly engineered CPU of Heero's design. Connected to it was Heero's infamous laptop and a number of other monitors and keyboards. Duo tried to take a step forward into the room but knocked over one of the many precariously balanced pieces of electronic equipment. No sooner had it hit the ground than it was followed by another very familiar noise and Duo looked up, finally locating the man he had come here looking for . . . and he was pointing a gun at him.
Duo stood his ground but faltered as soon as he had a minute to take in the sight of his friend. Heero looked like hell to say the least. He sat on the floor, back leaning against the wall behind him. Clad in only a pair of jeans and lose white t-shirt it was easy to tell that he had lost some weight, his skin looked off color, he obviously hadn't shaved in several days, and his hair seemed to hanging limply around his face. Above all else, Duo was transfixed by Heero's eyes; their usual vibrant blue was almost no where to be found, instead they looked dead and lifeless; sunken into their sockets, they glared at him from behind dark bangs in a way that would suggest something had gone horrible wrong inside.
"Heero . . ." but the words died on his lips. Nevertheless, his voice seemed to break the fierce look on the other man's face and he lowered the gun in his hand, but still said nothing.
Duo could never think of a time before this that he was legitimately frightened by Heero, but as he watched his best friend sink back against the wall and stare at apparently nothing all he could wonder what the other man might do at any second. Gathering as much courage as he could, Duo took another step into the room and addressed him again, "Heero, buddy . . . you alright man?" He knew it was a stupid question, the obvious answer was a decided 'no', but couldn't think of anything else to say.
Heero didn't respond, but he seemed to be staring at something in a blank sort of way. Slowly and trying to stay within Heero's line of sight so as not to startle him, Duo approached him and knelt beside him on the floor. "Heero?" Still no response, and he cautiously put a hand on his shoulder, shaking him the slightest bit; Heero still did not respond.
For some reason, panic suddenly washed over Duo. Crouching in front of the prone man, Duo seized both of his shoulders and shook him as gently as he could, "Heero!"
To his relief, Heero lifted his head slightly to look at his face; his eyes narrowed in a confused way; but as soon as the contact came, it went and Heero's gaze drifted back to where it had previously been, locked somewhere behind Duo. Not knowing what else to do, Duo shook the Japanese man again, but to no avail. He let out a breath he didn't know he was holding and sat back on his heals; Heero looked even worse from close up. The dark circles under his eyes were more pronounced and his skin seemed to be coated with a glossy looking sheen.
Duo ran his hands through his bangs as he tried to think what to do. Something was clearly very wrong with Heero, but as things were Duo couldn't even get him to respond to his efforts to rouse him from his dazed stupor. His mind raced; for some reason taking Heero to a hospital just didn't seem like a viable option, but he obviously needed medical attention. Duo stood and walked back to the hallway as he took his cell phone from his pocket and dialed the only number he could think of.
"This is Agent Po."
"Sally, hey, it's Duo. Listen, Sally . . . do you know how to get to Heero's place?"
It took her only about twenty minutes to get to their location, Duo was waiting by the door for her. Her face was drawn in concern; the description he had given her of Heero's condition had sparked her to immediate action. She strode purposefully down the hall and into the living room with a complete disregard for the miniature supercomputer Heero had sprawled out across the floor.
Duo watched as Sally let the bag she was carrying slip off her shoulder and onto the floor as she knelt down in front of Heero. She did all the things a doctor would do; checked his pulse, his pupil reaction, his response to pain . . . Heero responded to none of it and Duo could tell Sally was about to switch to less conventional tactics.
The thought had barely crossed his mind when Sally abruptly stood from where she was kneeling and traversed the room, stopping at the wall Heero was staring at, and turning around to face him. For a moment neither of them moved when suddenly Heero's head jerked up, looking at Sally as though she had just materialized out of thin air.
Duo was torn between relief and worry; Heero was looking around the room in a state of clear confusion and disorientation; he also appeared to be trying to speak and stand up, neither of which he seemed able to do. Flabbergasted, Duo turned to Sally who was walking back towards Heero now, "Sally, how did you -"
"He's dehydrated," she cut him off, "would you go get him some water please, Duo?"
"Wait, what did you –"
"Duo, the water, please." Her voice was soft but forceful and Duo had no choice but to comply.
He walked to the open doorway that connected the living room with the kitchen and stopped dead as he remembered the adjacent room was full of Heero's furniture. Duo sighed out loud as he grabbed the first thing he could and started pulling it back into the living room. No wonder Heero was dehydrated, he couldn't have gotten himself something to drink if he wanted to.
After finally making enough room to get himself to the refrigerator and retrieving a bottle of water, (noting that much of the food in there had gone bad) Duo went back into the living room where Sally had apparently dragged one of the couches he had just removed from the kitchen into the cluttered living room and placed Heero on it. Currently she was putting an IV in Heero's arm; Heero for his part was laying flat on his back, just staring at the ceiling, but even from where he was standing, Duo could tell his friend was at least aware of his surroundings now.
Duo made his way across the room, which was no small feat, and held the bottle out to Sally who took and it wordlessly put on Heero's chest as if to leave it for him when he wanted it. She tapped the IV line a bit and picked up the bag attached to it; after looking around for a moment she hung it from one of the many nails holding various pieces of paper to the wall next to where she had pushed the couch. Checking to make sure it was secure Sally stood and walked back to the kitchen, not knowing what else to do, Duo followed her.
They stepped inside and Sally leaned against one of the counters while turning to face him, "How long has he been missing?"
Duo was suddenly overcome to with the urge to defend his friend and his actions, "He's not missing Sally, he's a grown man, it's not like he ran away!"
Sally rolled her eyes, "Fine then, how long has it been since he stopped coming to work?"
"I don't know, I guess he was in the office last Monday –"
"So over a week and no one found that odd?"
Duo felt a wave of anger wash over him not appreciating the insinuation, "He called out of work on Tuesday after he got some bad news the day before Sally! Then I got an e-mail from him on Wednesday saying he'd be out the rest of the week . . . but then he wasn't in on Monday or the day after and I thought I should come check on him . . ."
"Duo," Sally's expression was no longer angry, but something closer to sympathetic, "what happened last Monday?"
The braided man sighed and suddenly couldn't meet Sally's eyes. As soon as Heero had called out that first day he knew why, but he thought that maybe some time off would do his friend some good. Heero of course had volunteered no information and Duo had learned not to push the matter in those situations. It was after Heero still hadn't come in the following week and was not answering his phone that Duo had started to worry about his friend . . .
"Duo." Sally's voice brought him back; he tried not to look stubborn but she must have seen it in his eyes because she suddenly squared her shoulders back and drew herself up to full height, "Duo, Heero is having some kind of a psychotic episode, he was almost completely catatonic and probably hallucinating when we arrived here." Without warning her eyes softened and her voice became quieter, "He's been slipping away these past two months, I know that you've noticed."
"Yeah." he agreed, suddenly engulfed by guilt. There was no denying it; as the investigation had wore on Heero had been folding in on himself. It was obvious to Duo that his friend was racked with guilt, but well, there was just something else there. In his defense, Duo had tried to get Heero to talk to him, but it was an exercise in futility. He had no recourse but to just keep an eye on him, hoped that he would slowly come to terms with what had happened, but then last Monday . . .
"Heero was taken off Relena's case."
Sally looked up, confusion splayed across her face, "What?"
Duo leaned back against the wall behind him, "Last Monday, Une reassigned Heero from Relena's case." He scratched the back of his head in his usual nervous manner, "The thing of it is that, well she's right. It's been two months since she disappeared and we've turned up squat." he practically spat, suddenly feeling very bitter about his own failures as well, "Une needs Heero for other stuff and we're getting absolutely no where. The Special Investigations team doesn't need him and Une's still got an agency to run. She can't have one of her best guys chasing a case that's going absolutely no where. But Heero . . ."
"Feels like the investigation is all but being closed." she finished for him.
Duo brought his hand up to massage the bridge of his nose, "It's not just him," he explained with a somewhat desperate tone, looking up to meet Sally's eyes, "Sally, we've been going at this, full tilt, for two months and have found absolutely nothing. No one's ever seen anything like this before, it's like she just vanished into thin air . . . and right under Heero's nose."
"And by taking him off the case, Une is basically telling him that she's gone and it's time to give up."
Duo nodded, "Yeah . . . the thing is, I think she's right."
Sally bowed her head a bit and added quietly, "Me too."
A heavy silence hung in the air; it felt like hours before Sally finally stood from the counter, "Heero needs to get to a hospital." Again Duo nodded, knowing that his friend would not like it, but something had to be done, "I'm going to call Une and let her know what's happened. Hopefully we can arrange something to keep this incident from getting out."
She took her cell phone from her pocket and began to walk towards the front door, but Duo stopped her, "Hey Sally?" She turned around, "Before, what did you do?"
"When I saw the state he was in, I guessed that he wasn't just completely catatonic, he looked like he was staring at something, probably a hallucinating whatever it was. I just followed his gaze and stood where it looked like he was staring; my interrupting his delirium must have snapped him out of it."
Duo blinked and took this information in as Sally continued towards the door, "He should be a little better by now, see if you can talk to him."
Duo sighed a slightly louder than he meant to and spun on his heels back towards the living room. As Sally predicted, Heero had propped himself up against one of the arms of the sofa with his legs stretched out in front of him. Duo paused for a moment, unsure of how to approach him; Heero still looked like death warmed over, but that was an improvement from his appearance ten minutes ago.
Before Duo could even open his mouth Heero looked up from where he had been staring at the floor; he was relieved to see that there was a coherency in his friend's eyes. Stuffing his hands into his pockets, Duo crossed the room and flopped down on the opposite side of the couch from where Heero sat; the Japanese man had let his head fall against the back of the sofa and closed his eyes.
Neither of them spoke. Duo began to feel as though the tension that hung in the air might smother him. As long as he had known Heero Yuy the man had been a rock. Yes, he had lost it before, but now like this . . . and not for these reasons. In their four years of friendship, Duo had never seen the man seated beside him this . . . vulnerable, and it scared him. It scared him because even if he would never admit to it out loud, through all the insanity that had been their lives since the war, Heero had been a constant for him; he was the calm, rational force that no matter what the situation would see to it that things worked out. And somehow seeing him like this, like another nameless broken man, somehow it served to remind him of the one thing he never really remembered, but always should have.
When all is said and done, Heero Yuy is a human being just like him and everyone else on the planet.
And humans have their limits. Heero had clearly been pushed over his, and he, the man's best friend, had failed to see it.
"Where's Sally?"
Heero's voice jarred him from his thoughts, "She went out front to make a phone call."
"Une." It was a statement not a question.
Duo leaned back into the couch, "Yeah . . ."
Silence flooded the room but only briefly this time as Heero spoke again, "What are they going to do?"
Duo sighed and sat up, but could not look at his friend, "I don't know man . . . you're probably gonna have to go to a hospital or something." Out of the corner of his eyes he saw Heero nod slowly.
He opened his mouth to speak again and Duo prepared himself for the string of protest that was surely about to come; but to his surprise Heero only muttered, "I keep seeing her."
Duo finally tilted his head to look at Heero, who was once again staring at the wall in front of him. Duo racked his brain trying to come up with something, anything to say, but to his amazement Heero kept talking but his voice sounded distant and vague "She's everywhere. On the news, in the papers, at work, at home, when I'm awake, when I dream . . . I see her everywhere."
"Heero buddy, it wasn't your fault –"
"Every night I see it all over again. I can see someone dragging her out of her room, drugging her, hurting her . . . and every night I'm there this time or I do something different. Every night I'm a little faster, a little smarter, a little more aware . . . every night it's something else, dozens of different ways . . . but every night I save her." He rested his head against his folded hands.
Finally Duo couldn't take it anymore. For two months he felt like there was something else there, something out of place in all this and he and been trying to ask Heero, but could never bring himself too. It was obvious now that this was the time. "Heero, what happened with you two?"
"She disappeared, Duo." came the deadpan reply.
"Yeah I noticed!" he practically yelled back, but calmed himself down even though Heero hadn't even seemed to notice. Duo took a deep breath, "I mean what happened with you two before. And don't say nothing. You said it yourself, you two had a fight and she wanted me to pick her up at the airport instead of you, so what happened?"
"It doesn't matter."
"Why not?"
"Because it doesn't change anything."
"Then why not just tell me?"
Heero didn't answer, he just let his head fall back against the couch as he emitted a noise Duo took to convey frustration. Despite this he was not deterred. It was clear that at least part of Heero's behavior had something to do with whatever fight Heero and Relena had had and seeing as the man seated next to him was probably going to be talking to a shrink for at least the next few weeks, this could be his last chance to try and get the information out of him. However, this was easier said than done, some sort of plan or tactic was clearly going to be necessary –
"That night, after the Gala, Relena and I . . . I spent the night with Relena."
Duo lifted his head in surprise at Heero's sudden vocalization; however this still didn't clarify matters. He tried not to sound too confused as he spoke, "Well yeah, I mean you were in charge of her security and the whole place was on lock down –"
"No Duo, I . . . I was with Relena that night."
There was no hiding the confusion now sprayed across his face and Heero was obviously getting irritated.
". . . In her bed, Duo."
"Oh." he answered casually but no sooner had the words left his mouth than his eyes grew wide as the implications of the words hit him, "Oh!" It came out a little more startled sounding than he and meant and Duo sighed and leaned back against the couch. "Oh . . . so, so what happened then?"
"We had sex, Duo!" Heero spit out the words, clearly annoyed that Duo couldn't connect the dots himself.
But this was not the case, "Obviously!" he lowered his voice, "I mean, what happened afterwards? Why did she –"
"Because I left her. When she woke up I was gone." His voice was quiet and for the first time Duo could ever remember, remorseful sounding.
Duo only nodded. Heero didn't need to explain, he didn't need to justify his actions. The guilt and self-doubt his friend had been wracked with was suddenly explained.
The two sat in silence as Duo idly began to wonder what could possibly be taking Sally so long.
"She's dead isn't she?"
Heero's word hit Duo hard and he found himself at a complete loss. He turned to face the Japanese man, but Heero was staring at the floor, apparently unable to meet Duo's eyes. He sighed and sat forward so that his arms rested on the top of his thighs, knowing full well that he could never take back what he was about to say, "Yeah, she is man. I'm sorry."
Heero did not react to Duo's words and somewhere in the distance he heard the front door open and the sounds of Sally's boots on the hardwood floor. They both knew that they would learn Heero's fate in moments, but Heero didn't seem to care. Duo watched him as he continued to gaze at the floor in front of him, transfixed by the haunting shadow that still dulled his eyes.
- - - - -
Duo watched Heero as he stood in front of Wufei and found himself once again transfixed by the same shadow he had seen all those years ago. What this meant he could not say. His thoughts were interrupted as the subject of them spoke.
"How do I find her?"
Wufei looked up, "I ca –"
He never finished the sentence as Zechs launched himself at the already bleeding man, "Don't you dare tell me you can't take us to her! You're going to tell me exactly where she is and how I can find her!"
Wufei's eyebrows crinkled in anger and he pushed Zechs away from him, "You can do whatever the hell you want to me, but you're not getting anywhere near Shitou village –"
"I swear to God Chang, I will beat you to within an inch of your –"
"Yuy can go." Wufei cut him off.
Zechs looked back and forth between the two Asian men almost frantically. "Yuy –"
"Or Maxwell, it doesn't really make a difference to me." Wufei answered coolly before turning to face Zechs with a much more serious look on his face, "You're too recognizable Zechs. Even if the guys at O'Malley's agreed to arrange passage for you, you'd never make it there. It's a dangerous journey; someone would realize who you were and you'd never be heard from again."
The blonde man practically sputtered but managed to find words, "Do you think that I'm just going to sit here and wait for Heero to bring my sister back?!"
"You don't have choice!" Wufei was on his feet again. "You're not getting this! Relena is Kimi, she's one of Keiji's seven leaders, she's part of the Nanami! I don't even know how to find her village!"
"But you always manage to get there!"
"Yes, and Keiji members have to take me!" He sighed and sat down, "Relena is possibly more heavily guarded now than she was when she was Foreign Minister. No one can find her unless Keiji lets them."
Noin lifted her eyes to meet Wufei's, "And you think that they'll let Heero?"
Wufei half shrugged but didn't get the chance to answered as a great deal of commotion erupted outside the doors at the other end of the room. Muffled voices could be heard from the other side.
"Don't tell me I can't go in there! One of my agents is –"
"Ma'am please, Mr. Peacecraft gave orders –"
"Well they don't apply to me!"
With out warning the doors of the office burst open and Lady Une marched through them. She stopped after a few seconds to survey the room before spotting her target and making a beeline to him.
It could have been Duo's imagination but he was sure he saw Wufei flinch as his Commander shoved him back into the chair and towered menacingly over him.
"Do you two have any idea of what you've done?! The mess that you've created?!"
Wufei did not yell back at her, instead he let his eyes fall on the floor, as though he could not bear to meet the looks on his friend's faces, "It . . . it wasn't supposed to happen like this, Relena was supposed to be able to come back after only a few months, but then the Echidna Epidemic struck and everything that came after it . . . our original plan couldn't . . . the whole situation just got out of control . . ."
"Then you should have told us!!" Noin sounded on the verge of tears again, "You should have told us that she was hidden and safe and that she'd come back to us!!"
Wufei lifted his head, his eyes narrowed but he kept his voice calm, "Are you going to honestly sit there and tell me that all of you would have sat patiently and waited for her to come back? Don't you think that Relena agonized over this for months?"
A look of disgust crossed Une's face, "Oh, so it was her who decided – "
"Yes it was!" The other five people in the room looked startled by Wufei's sudden outburst.
But Une recovered quickly, "Where the hell is she Chang?!"
"Oh, you didn't hear?" Duo answered in a mock pleasant voice as though engaging in casual conversation, "Relena's with Keiji, yeah apparently she's Okimi – sorry, Kimi – now too."
Silence swept over the room as Une slowly turned her head back to her subordinate, "He had better be kidding." her voice was quiet and deadly sounding.
Wufei only shook his head, "If I had known, I never would have let her –"
In a flash of brown and green Heero had crossed the room and leaned menacingly on the arms of Wufei's chair; he crouched over the Chinese man, their faces inches apart, Heero's eyes were renewed with a deadly look. "What did you think she was going to do?! You said it yourself, Relena's a strong person; did you really think that she'd just sit around and let Keiji fight a war without helping them?!"
Wufei made no effort to get Heero away from him, "We didn't know that there was going to be a war! I sent her there so that she'd be safe, not so she could do something like this!"
"But she did!"
"And how was I to stop her? She's not under mine or anyone else's control!"
With those words Heero took an unconscious step backwards. Wufei rubbed the bridge of his nose and continued, "Relena only became Kimi about a year ago. The way the Nanami works is that if one of them dies, they're replaced by another. The previous Kimi died, Relena took his place. A year ago I went to China to meet with Keiji and Kimi and found Relena there waiting for me." He gave a sad sort of half laugh, "I was furious with her, but I couldn't stop her from doing it. She was right, Keiji needed her and she has been a great asset to them."
"Do they know who she is?"
Wufei turned around to face Duo, "What?"
"Do these Keiji guys know that they have Relena Peacecraft running around out there with them?"
Wufei shrugged a bit, "The ones who need to know do. Most of the outsiders that are brought to Keiji are generally people who were in danger where they were. There aren't many of them and the rest of Keiji knows not to ask about their pasts so as not to endanger them."
"How long will it take me to get to the village?" Heero demanded.
Une lifted her head in confusion and looked toward Heero, "You're going after her?"
Wufei answered for him, "If I can convince my connections to take him."
"You didn't answer my question." Heero was obviously annoyed at being ignored.
"That's because I don't know the answer." Wufei snapped back at him, "It usually takes me about a week to get there, but I can meet Keiji half way. If they agree to take you it could be over two weeks before you actually get there."
Heero stopped as if to consider this for a moment, "Then we'd better head back to Brussels now."
"Now hold on just one minute!" Zechs was on his feet again, "My sister has been missing for three and a half years now, I'm not just going to sit here for over a month for Yuy to bring her back!"
Wufei shook his head in a frustrated way but kept his voice calm and even, "Zechs, the people at O'Malley's won't take you there."
"O'Malley's?!" Une's voice cut through the air as she whipped around to face Wufei, a look of complete disbelief on her face, "That pub in Olde City?" Wufei nodded, "That's the Keiji outpost?!"
Wufei let out a small sigh, clearly aggravated that his long kept secret was no more, "It's the outpost in Brussels, yeah."
Une drew in a deep breath and smoothed out her shirt in her habitual way, "I think that you have a lot to tell me." Her voice was surprisingly calm and she turned to face the rest of those present, "I'd like Agent Chang to clean himself up, then he can explain himself." She looked to Heero, "Yuy, you look like hell. Go get a shower and shave; if you're going to find her get whatever you have to together."
Heero nodded and looked as though he was about to speak but Une beat him to it, "I'll handle everything at HQ." She took a step towards Noin and Zechs, "Could I ask the two of you and Agent Maxwell to get to Brussels in two days?"
Duo scratched his head, "What for?"
"We're going to have to convene as much of Yalta as we can." She subconsciously lowered her voice, "The world's current situation has just taken a very dramatic turn."
- - - - -
Heero closed his eyes and let the hot water run over his head and shoulders. He felt numb and lethargic as he tried to wrap his head around the events of the last hour.
She was alive.
After all this time, Relena was still alive. There was so much to consider, so much to plan for. He had no idea how long it would take him to actually track her down and no idea what he would find once he got there.
Three and a half years. It had been three and a half years since he had last seen her. How would she have changed in that time? Would she even want to see him? He tried not to think about that; Wufei had told him that she misses them, she had broken into Ichtaca Base to check on him . . . but still.
He had been trying to put himself in her position, think about what he would have done facing the same set of problems, but there was no way to compare the two of them. They were two very different people . . . but they were the same in so many ways.
Maybe that's why he was so stunned, so . . . dare he call it 'hurt' by Relena's actions. Because he would have done exactly the same thing.
Heero almost laughed to himself. After all their time together, Relena seemed to have picked up on his old habits. Clarity began to come to him as he considered this. What Wufei had said was right, he never would have considered that Relena was capable of something like this . . . he had never thought that she could leave them all, not like he could. But he had forgotten how alike they really were; that just like he would do anything to keep her safe, she would do the same for him.
Heero lifted his head and turned off the faucets. As he shaved and dressed he began to feel anxious again. What would he find after all this time? So much could happen in three years, he was living proof of that.
But what would these three years have done to her?
- - - - -
Une's back was to him. As he finished retelling his story, she stared out the window. She did not speak and Wufei did not know what to say. The minutes dragged on without a word, which was fine as far as Wufei was concerned, after the events of the afternoon he could use the quiet.
"So, all of this stems back to that little project I gave the two of you six years ago."
Wufei lifted his head a little faster than he should of at the sound of Une's cool and even voice. She turned around to look at him when he did not answer her immediately. Wufei nodded and in a quiet but firm tone responded, "Yes."
Une closed her eyes and leaned against the wall with her chin resting slightly on her chest. "I understand."
"Commander," Wufei heard his voice leave his throat but he hardly recognized it. There was a desperate and apologetic tone there, something that had not emerged during his time with the others, but now . . . He had always respected Une, respected the work that she did, respected that she had been Treize Khushrenada's right hand. For reasons he could not explain he felt the overwhelming need to justify his actions.
"If you and Miss Peacecraft were following the directive that I entrusted to you, then I have no reason to be angry." Une's voice cut off his thoughts. "You have explained what led the two of you to this point, why you took the actions that you did. From what I can see you were acting within the guidelines that I stipulated."
Une paused and crossed the room to take a seat in the chair opposite him. Her posture relaxed considerably as she continued, "I won't pretend that I'm happy with what happened. You allowed Preventers to spend months looking for someone who wasn't really missing, and while I understand that the information you possessed would not have changed the events surrounding Nicholas Josef's rise to power, I wish you would have told me what you knew."
Wufei closed his eyes and nodded, "Commander, you know as well as I do that we couldn't. When you gave us this assignment, the idea was that Relena and I handle it. You can't go back and retroactively select what you should and should not have been informed of. It was all or nothing with your degree of involvement and all of us decided that nothing would be best."
"I'm not arguing that point," she leaned back against the chair, "and while understand why you sent Relena away what I am more concerned about is that according to what you told me you knew of the existence of Keiji long before they announced themselves to the world."
Wufei looked up at her is disbelief, "Of course I did, Keiji factions have been hiding out in my clan's ancestral lands for decades." Une looked as though she was about to interrupt him, but he kept talking, "Commander, I know a great deal of things and have a number of other sources which you don't know about. I'm sure that you could say the same."
The older woman nodded. "I'm not trying to contest that we all have our secrets, Agent Chang."
He shook his head, "Commander, I didn't know that there was going to be war."
"Yes, I understand that."
"I didn't see any reason to divulge my connections with Keiji, especially not when I had just sent Relena to them."
"I assume it was her then that suggested to them that you act as the go between for them and Preventers."
Wufei shrugged, "Most likely."
Une sighed and leaned forward again, "I would think that someone like her would wield the power to make such decisions being Okimi and –"
"Kimi, Commander." he cut her off.
"What?"
"It's not 'Okimi', her code name is just 'Kimi'." Une wrinkled her eyebrows in confusion, "The actual code names are just Daisuke, Inari, Izanam, Kisho, Shito, Yukio, and Kimi. When Keiji started working with the Irish, the Irish started adding the "O' in front in accordance with their odd sense of humor. Like O'Brien, O'Ryan, –"
"O'Malley." She finished for him. Wufei nodded in return. "That's where you're taking Yuy then?"
"I'm not sure if they'll actually agree to bring him to Relena's village."
Une did not answer, instead she stood and walked back to the window before speaking again. "I sincerely hope that they will. While what you did was completely inadvertent, Agent Chang, you and Miss Peacecraft may very well have managed to give save ESUN through your actions."
- - - - -
Zechs stood outside the room Heero was using. He had hoped that the man on the other side of the doors would emerge on his own, saving himself from having to go in there, but Heero was taking his time and Zechs couldn't take it anymore.
He raised a hand and knocked on the door, feeling incredibly stupid as he did so . . . maybe it was because this was his home. In a matter of seconds the door opened and Heero Yuy stood facing him. Without a word he stepped aside to allow Zechs entrance.
After the door closed behind them, Zechs turned to face Heero, but he could tell the Japanese man already knew why he was here. "I don't think that I really need to tell you what I came here to."
Heero shook his head once, "No, you don't."
Silence hung in the air, but for once it was not a tense silence. For once, Zechs felt . . . maybe it could best be called an emotional companionship to Heero Yuy. He almost laughed at the notion, "This is an odd situation that we're in here."
"How so?" Heero did not seem to be sharing in his slight amusement.
Zechs couldn't help the small smile that crept on to his face, maybe he was becoming delirious. "Because something has happened to Relena and it's not either of our faults."
Heero sat down and began pulling on his boots, "Want to go beat the crap out of Chang?"
"He's got to get you through that O'Malley's group first." Zechs shifted uncomfortably and leaned against the wall, trying to think how to best phrase what he needed to say. "Heero –"
"I'll bring her back, Zechs." He lifted his head so that he could look directly at the other man, "If I have to drag her kicking and screaming all the way back to Brussels I will."
Zechs felt his throat close up. He couldn't even go find his own sister, instead he was forced to rely on the man that she herself had come to trust more than him. He felt disgusted with himself; after all this time –
"You shouldn't hold this against yourself." Heero's voice jarred him from his thoughts.
"What?"
The younger man stood as he gathered some things from the room and began stuffing them in a bag. "We've all had to make sacrifices. Relena sacrificed the life that she knew for us. You've had to sacrifice the life you wanted for everyone else." Heero closed the small duffle bag and slung it over his shoulder, "In a perfect world you'd be able to go find your sister and bring her back safely."
Zechs scoffed, "In a perfect world, she never would have had to leave in the first place."
Heero nodded in silent agreement and walked to the door, "Wufei should be ready to go by now."
The blonde man straightened himself from the wall and followed him out the door and towards the staircase. Three weeks had passes since he had first received the video and learned that his little sister was still indeed alive after all these years. He had slowly begun to come to terms with this . . . but now it was actually happening, she could be back in as little as a month.
He was both thrilled and terrified, but he could not say why. He had waited years, eventually given up hope, and now what he wanted more than anything was coming to pass and all he could feel was an overwhelming sense of dread.
As he walked down one of the many grand hallways, he looked at the portraits of his ancestors that adorned the walls . . . and it hit him. This fear that was suddenly over taking him wasn't fear on his own behalf, but rather for Relena.
Before her disappearance she had been a leader of the world, they had looked to her for peace and stability. What would happen when she came back? Zechs paused in front of the last portrait before the staircase, that of his own family. The infant Relena held in their mother's arms, a much younger version of himself at her side. Behind them their father stood tall and regal.
The life they had been born into was taken away and they had been forced to forge new paths for themselves. He had strayed far from his family and now Relena had too. Zechs turned and continued down the staircase. He wasn't unhappy, he had his wife, his county, his cause, and now he had his sister back . . . but despite all of this, he missed the life he knew as the Lightening Count. He missed the anonymity that it had granted him and the freedom he had possessed. It had taken him years to give up that life and that persona. Looking back now, it was easy to see that this had been the right choice to make, he was happy.
But would his sister be able to simply stop being Kimi of the Nanami and start being Relena Peacecraft again?
He reached the bottom of the stairs and found Heero waiting there along with his wife, Wufei, and Une. The massive doors behind them opened and Duo entered the room.
"Alright, there's a car for you outside. They'll get you to the airport and a transport will take you to Brussels from there."
Heero nodded as he and Wufei shouldered their bags. Goodbyes were exchanged, hands were clasped, promises were made. The room was filled with the sentiments of 'Take care of yourself, man.', 'Please, be careful.', 'We'll be waiting here for you.', and 'I won't come back without her.'
The doors closed behind them and the people gathered their dispersed. It was only a gentle hand on his shoulder that brought him back. Turning, Zechs was met with the soft features of his wife. Her eyes were once again brimming with liquid, but this time she was smiling.
"She's coming back."
He smiled in return and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her as close as he could. He nodded in agreement, "She is."
- - - - -
The phone rang for what felt like the millionth time as Duo taped his foot impatiently. His hands were sweating and he could feel his heart racing. He closed his eyes and leaned back against the brick wall that ran around one of the many gardens surrounding the Sanq Kingdom's palace and tried to calm himself down. For the life of him he couldn't understand why he was so nervous, especially in such peaceful surroundings.
There was a click on the other line and Hilde's voice rang through the speaker, "Hello –"
"Hilde?"
" – you've reached the home of Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell, and Hilde Schbeiker. We're not here right now, please –"
Duo flipped his phone shut with a frustrated snarl, but just as he was about to stuff it back into his pocket it began ringing again. Reflexively he held it up to his ear, "This is Duo Maxwell."
"Duo, you're back?!"
He nearly dropped the phone as a huge grin broke out across his face. "Hilde, babe! Yeah, I'm back, I –"
A happy sounding noise emanated from the other side of the conversation. "Oh, Duo I'm so glad you're home. Are you and Heero at the airport? I can come get you guys."
Duo scratched the back of his head as his heart began racing again, "Yeah, listen babe, I'm not at the airport. I'm in the Sanq Kingdom right now."
"Oh." she sounded confused and a little disappointed, "Une wanted to meet with you right away? I heard she was up there this week."
Duo let himself slump down the wall until he was sitting on the cool grass all the while trying to come up with a way to say what he had called Hilde to tell her. "Well, it – there was . . ."
"Duo, what's wrong?" Hilde had slipped into her firm but concerned voice, there was no getting around it now.
"Hilde, I gotta tell you something babe . . . are you sitting down?"
- - - - -
Edward Cordell set down his book on the table besides the leather recliner he was currently occupying, nearly knocking over the glass of wine he had set there. Cursing under his breath he stood and walked swiftly across the room to retrieve the cell phone that was ringing from his briefcase.
He paused a moment to look at the caller ID and couldn't help but smile as he flipped open the phone and held it to his ear, "Why Lady Une, what a pleasant surprise."
He could practically feel her rolling her eyes at him, "Hello Edward."
"And what can I do for you this evening?"
She sighed, which to him was never a good sign, "I need you to be at fair grounds tomorrow at 2:00, we're having a picnic."
At the use of the Yalta codes, Cordell's attention immediately sharpened, "Are all invited?"
"All but the ants."
"And can I bring anything to this gathering?"
"All the information you have on ESUN's laws pertaining to delayed succession."
The already cryptic conversation had taken a turn into confusion, "Une?"
"I've got a special desert for the guests. But we need to be careful Malta, I fear we may have wasps waiting for us."
- - - - -
The car stopped and jarred Wufei from his thoughts. He looked up and sure enough, O'Malley's loomed in the distance, barely visible through the early morning fog. As he stepped out of the vehicle and waited for Heero, Wufei could not help but be reminded of that foggy morning over three years ago when he had come to say goodbye to Relena before she began her journey.
He was uncomfortable with this whole situation. In the first place there was a very good chance that Doyle would simply refuse to allow Heero to go at all, and frankly he wasn't sure what he'd do if that happened. Secondly, everyone was now assuming that Heero was going to get out there and bring Relena back. Assuming that he did manage to get to Shitou, there was no guarantee that she would agree to come back; she was needed by Keiji and had more than enough devoted followers who would die rather than let her be taken away against her will.
For now however, it was one thing at a time. Heero fell into step besides Wufei as the two of them walked to the pub entrance. It was before dawn, the door was closed and the lights were out. "Is there going to be someone here?"
"There's always someone here." Wufei replied in a deadpan voice.
Heero watched as the Chinese man lifted the wrought iron latch on the wooden door and it slid open. He followed him inside and waited for him to close the heavy door behind them. The large room was empty like Heero had never seen it before. He hadn't been here in a very long time; honestly it reminded him too much of her.
The sound of heavy footsteps coming towards them snapped him out of his thoughts, but Wufei did not seem concerned by them, nor the massive man that burst through the kitchen doors wielding a rather large shot gun.
"Who the bloody hell be breakin' into –" he stopped short at the sight of the two of them and Heero recognized him as the bartender and owner of the establishment, Doyle O'Malley.
"Agent Chang, and . . . my word, Agent Yuy." He smiled and set the gun down on the bar next to him; he began to cross the room as he spoke, "Blazes be boys, what the devil are ye doin' here this hour?"
Wufei didn't answer, instead he gestured to one of the booths. Without a word Heero and Doyle followed him and took a seat. As they got situated, Heero took the opportunity to get a good look at Doyle. The man was in his late fifties but still had a full head of dark hair. He was tall, at least 6'4" and burly to say the least. He had thick sideburns that ran down past his ears and bushy eyebrows from beneath which two hazel eyes twinkled in the dim light.
Wufei removed something from the bag he was carrying and set it out on the table; a map of China. Heero noticed Doyle sit back abruptly, as though startled and he could tell the man knew what Wufei was going to ask before he even said it.
"Heero needs to get to Shitou village in the Guizhou province."
"Out of the question!" Doyle cut back immediately.
"Doyle, he –"
But Doyle wouldn't hear him, "What the bloody hell could ye be thinkin' lad? You told him?! Why the blazes –"
"Somebody found out about Relena, Doyle."
The older man stopped as though he had been stabbed in the chest. He looked back and forth between the other two men, eyes finally resting on Heero as though pleading to with him to refute what Wufei had said. But Heero only nodded, "It's true."
Doyle visibly paled, "But how . . ."
"Somebody sent her brother a tape of the night we snuck her out of the Peacecraft Manor. Doyle, someone knows that she's alive, we need to get to her and –"
"Then you can go yourself, Wufei."
Wufei opened his mouth to answer but was cut off by Heero, "I'm going to find Relena myself."
Doyle looked Heero over for a minute before responding, "Ah yes . . . yes I'd almost forgotten. You were the one in charge of her security."
Heero tried not to glare at the man; he had not meant the statement to be insulting. "I'm going to find Relena even if you refuse to help me. If that happens I can't guarantee that I won't be followed to the Keiji base –"
"Now I'll be having none of that!" Doyle pounded his fist on the table, "It's one thing for you ter be concerned about the little miss, but you won't be threatenin' the work that we be doing!"
"That's not what he meant, Doyle." Wufei tried to calm the man down.
"Like hell it's not!" He turned to face Heero, "Now listen to me you. I don't give a rat's arse who the bleedin' hell you be. No one is going to be doin' anything that might endanger Keiji or Miss Relena! Yer make one step in her direction without the approval of Keiji –"
"Then give it to me." Heero's voice was deadly, "I want to find her. Somebody knows that she's still alive, they might even know where she is." He lowered his voice, "And if you think that you're going to stop me from letting something happen to her again –"
"Heero, enough." Wufei's voice was calm but had a tone that conveyed warning. He turned back to where Doyle sat, now red in the face. "Doyle, somebody needs to go and find Relena. Her family and friends know that she's alive now, and like we've already told you, someone else does as well."
The older man sighed and ran a hand through his thick hair, "You don't need to be tellin' me just how serious all of this is Wufei. But I can't just be sendin' whoever wants to go out the villages."
"I understand that, but Relena might be in a great deal of danger. She might not be safe where she is anymore."
"And what are yer plannin' to do then, eh?" Doyle was now starting to look beside himself, "What do you think you're goin' to be able to do that Keiji can't?"
"I don't know." Heero stated plainly, "I won't know until I can see her, talk to her, find out what's been going on out there." He leaned in slightly closer, "But I promise that I will not let anything happen to her."
Doyle let out an exasperated sounding noise, "Agent Yuy, have to be understandin' this. My job is to see to it that things like this don' happen. That outsiders don't just wander in and out of the organization and its safe places and bases."
"O'Malley, do you really think that I'm some sort of a threat to Keiji?"
The statement seemed to throw the man off balance. He considered this for a moment while he sat back in the booth and rubbed one of his sideburns. "Can I be havin' your word, Agent Yuy, that you will do exactly as your guides instruct you to?"
He nodded.
"And if they tell yer that it be too dangerous and ye'll have to go back and try again, I can count on you to do that?"
"As long as they can guarantee me that I'll get there."
Doyle nodded and closed his eyes, letting his head come to rest in his hands. "Alright then. The earliest I can arrange for yer to be leaving is two days. In the meantime, ye'll be needin' to stay in the upstairs rooms so as not to draw attention to yer comins' and goins'." He turned to Wufei, "Agent Chang, can I ask you to get procure the supplies and paperwork Agent Yuy is going to be needin'?
"I'll have them here the night before he leaves."
Doyle smiled the tiniest bit as he stood up and offered a hand to Heero, who rose from his seat in order to shake it. "Well then, you've got two days. I suggest that you use them to rest . . . you have a very long and dangerous trip ahead of you . . ."
- - - - -
Ivan Uzehasnyurieh walked swiftly down the darkened hallway. While he would not dare to be late it certainly did no harm to be early either; those with whom he was meeting were not patient people. He tightened his grip on the folders he held and quickened his pace further.
After nearly ten minutes more and several dozen turns, Ivan finally stood in front of the room he was looking for. The guard standing outside saluted and opened the heavy door to allow him entrance. He paused before stepping inside reflecting on the fact that no matter how many times he came to this hidden chamber it never ceased to send chills up his spine.
The door slammed shut behind him and Ivan turned to face the five individuals seated around a long, rectangular table that was positioned in the middle of the ornate, but entirely windowless, large room. Sprawled out across the table were various maps, documents, and several glasses of what was no doubt very expensive brandy.
"Commander Uzehasnyurieh," a cool male voice rang out through the still air, "I presume that you have a reason for calling all of us here on such short notice."
Ivan reflexively jumped to attention, "Y-yes sir!" He took a cautious step forward, "Sirs and madams, one of my teams have uncovered some information that, well, I believe you had best look at for yourselves." He indicated the pile of folders he was holding.
The one seated nearest to him slightly extended his arm and the Commander handed him the stack. The man took a sip of his brandy while he read he title on the folder before him; his eyebrow's quirked with curiosity.
"T-there's one there for each of you, sir."
The man did not answer, rather he removed the top folder from the pile, opening it in the process, and shoved the rest unceremoniously down to the woman seated next to him as he began to read. In less than a minute all five were skimming the pages before them with more than mild interest.
Ivan watched from his place near the door, waiting for one of them to speak. Finally, the woman at the very end of the table broke the silence.
"Is this right?" confusion played across her beautiful face.
"Y-yes ma'am!" Ivan lowered his voice, "Two of my men have confirmed it ma'am."
She shook her head in disbelief, "After all this time . . . she's still alive."
"And they've been hiding her? How is it that no one noticed?" the man seated next to the woman spoke with equal bewilderment, but his voice was soft and congenial.
"The world believed her dead sir. That's my only explanation."
The older man nodded, "All these years and the girl has been alive, hidden practically under our noses." He raised his eyes to look at the Commander, "How did your men find her?"
Ivan let out a breath, "I must confess sir, that it was partially luck. One of my operatives spotted her during a routine reconnaissance mission and recognized her."
One of the men on the left side of the table sniffed, "That alone is to be commended, she looks quite different from what I personally remember her as."
"Yes sir, my team felt the same way." He stood up straighter, "However, after further investigation we were able to confirm her identity."
"Then you have no doubt in your mind, Commander," the man who had first addressed him spoke again, "that this is beyond a shadow of a doubt her?"
"Beyond a shadow of a doubt sir."
Seated next to him, a woman whose face had been obscured by the darkness leaned forward over the table, "Well done, Commander Uzehasnyurieh. I am pleased to see that Oprichniki you've been given control of have uncovered something we may use." She smiled in an almost pleasant way, "May I assume, Commander, that our enemies are unaware of your discovery."
"Yes ma'am, you may."
Her smile broadened but took on a sort of twisted quality as if to illustrate the potential for insanity in the woman. "Excellent. Well then, I assume you know your next course of action. And I believe that I speak for all present when I say that we want her alive."