Aug. 31, 2005- BIRTHDAY UPDATE!

As I've been on the site for over a year now, I figure I can shed the cloak of anonymity and say a bit 'bout myself. My real name's Shannon, I'm an English major at Colorado State University, and I love you guys so much it hurts (due to excessive grinning and sleep depravation trying to WRITE, dammit!). Therefore, you get two specials in honor of the date- one for each birthday I've had while writing GW ficcage! Enjoy! (hugs everybody) They're short little things, but entertaining, so…yeah.

…And yes, 11.2 IS on its way. Patience, please. I'm a busy, busy little girl…

Oh, and since I don't think I've ever done one of these on dear Prodigy…

Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN GUNDAM WING. I neither own it, nor claim to own it. My logic follows: People who own Gundam Wing are rich. I am not rich. Therefore, I do not own Gundam Wing. Huzzah for deductive logic!

x---x

Prodigy

Special #1: Concerning Trowa and Heero's First Meeting

x---x

"First time I met him was on a tour of the labs last year. I took a wrong turn and stumbled into his lab. Before I knew it I was running for my life. I ended up locked in his vacuum chamber for three hours while he interrogated me." He chuckled. "Ever since he let me out, he's been my best friend."

x---x

About a year and a half ago in our Prodigy timeline…

Night.

It was one of those moments, he couldn't help but think, where you expect to hear wolves howling in the distance, or maybe see a shady figure standing under a streetlamp in a hat and trench coat. One of those nights where you almost feel like you're in a detective story, just waiting to see the resident gumshoe trailing your every move.

Trowa Barton frowned as he walked into the Saparta Laboratory Complex's near-unlit west entrance, the other graduate students and TAs shuffling about uncomfortably. The tour guide- a balding, bland man with raccoon eyes- obviously couldn't care less, flirting with the young student at the front desk. After a couple minutes more, a brave soul in the front of the group cleared his throat, and the tour guide whirled around, a surprised frown on his face.

"Ahem. Well then. Get on with it," he muttered, waving an uncaring hand towards the hall in front of them. All forty pairs of eyes blinked at him as he passed out photocopied white papers, the faded black map almost indecipherable. "I'll be in 432D if you need anything." The man speed walked past the confused students, and Trowa blinked again.

Hesitating for a moment, he looked at the map, finally pulling a pen out of his backpack and attempting to trace the dull markings representing walls while the other students began mulling about, each going in a random direction. The woman at the front desk was busy popping her gum and looking about as happy about the situation as Trowa.

"Excuse me, but-"

"It's a self-guided tour, hon," the receptionist churned out around the glob of gum. "You're a grad student, figure it out for yourself."

So, Trowa found himself wandering the halls of the Saparta Laboratory Complex. It was literally built like a maze, being added on to at random, constantly under construction depending on the newest pet researchers and how much room they needed. Figuring he should treat the maze like a maze, he followed the left wall of the hallway.

He passed Archaeology, Astronomy, Botany, Biology, Chemistry, and then…then, he found himself staring down a small hallway, an intriguing red sign reading "DESTRUCTION EXPERIMENTATION" hanging next to a slightly charred metal door.

Trowa glanced back down at his map. This hallway, not to mention the section, wasn't even on his map…unless it was that gray blob in the corner near where the elevators were…He sighed. He needed directions, and the tiny window on the door showed a blonde girl asleep in a chair…maybe she could help?

Cautiously, he opened the door, the mechanism letting out a gentle hiss. Of course, he couldn't notice it, since as soon as the door was opened he could hear the girl's gentle sobbing. Green eyes wide, he inched forward. "Miss? Are you-"

A gun was pointed at his head. Blazing blue eyes swarmed him. "Who are you?"

"Heero, no!" the girl sobbed, but the boy before him ignored her plea, glaring at Trowa. He could feel something slam into him, and suddenly Trowa was sitting in a chair, the gun at his temple and the boy- Heero? - behind him.

"Who are you? Who do you work for?"

"HEERO! STOP!"

"Stay out of this, or leave," the boy called Heero said coolly, and more tears welled up in the blonde's eyes.

"Where would I go?" she whispered.

Trowa was no idiot. He knew his attacker was probably more distracted right now than he'd be in the near future, so he did what any intelligent man of his background would- shoved the gun upwards, yanked it out of the other boy's hands, and ran as fast and as hard as his long legs would let him.

Oh god, oh god, oh god…He could hear Heero's feet behind him. What had he found? WHO had he found? What was going on? Oh god…

He didn't know how long he'd been running around, turning at random and praying to avoid a dead end. Oh god, oh god! He turned left, the soles of his shoes leaving skid marks. And just like the past however-many-times, the other boy was heard following him relentlessly.

Time wore on, and he turned quickly again…only to find himself in a giant room filled with glass-guarded presentations of inventions and ideas. But, more importantly, a dead end. Oh god…what would Catherine do? Following his train of thought, he did exactly what his sister would do- jumped straight onto the top of a nearby display case, and crouched down alo- OH CRAP! The crazy lab boy's gun landed on top of the scale proudly displayed in the glass box, clunking down on one side as the measurements whirred, happily dinging to 2.49 pounds.

"THIS ITEM WEIGHS…TWO, POINT, FOUR, NINE…POUNDS!" A cheerful woman's voice blared out of the nearby speakers as Trowa slammed his head against the display case's woven top. "THAT'S…ONE, POINT, ONE, THREE…KILOGRAMS!" He could just hear the smirk in his pursuer's casual steps towards him. "HAVE A NICE DAY!" The Scale for the Hard Of Hearing clicked off cheerily, leaving only the sound of a gun's safety being clicked off in the empty hall.

"Get down." His voice was crisp and firm, but undeniably amused. Trowa could tell. He was being laughed at by a quiet, undeniably crazy boy holding him at gunpoint. Oh, fun.

Trowa complied, jumping down as harmlessly as he could manage. As soon as his feet touched the floor, something slammed against his head. His vision quickly swirled to black as he fell to glossy tile floor.

---

The door to the vacuum chamber opened hesitantly. Trowa stepped out, barely containing a sigh for the lost-looking boy in front of him.

"I…" Heero began, trailing off as that vacant expression took hold again, his eyes shifting to the girl curled up on the table, the only blanket in the room draped over her as she lay with her head resting on her ams. "I have to be careful." He shook his head. "She…she's innocent. Too innocent."

"It's okay," Trowa said calmly, as if he was coaxing the lions into the cage.

"No, it's not," Heero snapped, his vacant expression evaporating into the usual fierce frown. "It won't ever be okay. Ever." He dropped down into the nearest lab chair, his disheveled brown hair hiding his eyes. "Get out."

Trowa smiled softly. "No."

"Go. Away."

"No." Before Heero could lock him in the vacuum chamber or shoot him again, he spoke again. "You need to eat something, both of you." Trowa shrugged. "And my sister's an excellent cook."

Confused blue eyes met his, slowly clearing in understanding. For a moment, they simply understood each other, the knowledge they'd come to an unbreakable, unspoken agreement surprisingly comforting.

"Thank you," Heero finally said quietly.

And Trowa smiled.

x---x

Prodigy

Special #2: Concerning Hilde

x---x

…I was supposed to get attached to Quatre Raberba Winner. So I did. I never expected it to get so crazy- no, not crazy, deep. I didn't think I'd end up caring.

See, I've been ER (Extended Reconnaissance, to those not in the espionage business) since I was five, found wandering around in Munich with a bag of all my clothes, and twenty euros clutched in my grubby little hand. When he found me, he was kind enough to take me in. Not many would do that, if you didn't know. Orphans aren't in high demand.

I'll always remember those two words. They were the first words I ever heard in English.

"You'll do."

They changed my life. He took me in, and taught me to watch. Plenty of people don't even see half of what's going on around them. It's almost pathetic. Cheating couples, cheating poker players, cheating students…you name it, you can see it. They shift, they squirm, they freeze up. The world's a series of tells. And he taught me every single one.

When I was six, I met Noin. She was only eight or nine or so, and we looked a lot alike actually, so we got put together as sisters for a lot of our work. She'd look out for me, and I'd try to keep her out of trouble.

Lucrezia Noin couldn't be ER if she even wanted to be. Hell, I doubt she'd be able to just be a spy, period. Noin's definitely into the more straightforward method. It's actually kinda refreshing, but back then it just seemed to get her into trouble. So, I'd try to teach her to say nothing while jabbering, to disappear in a crowd, to simply…watch.

We've never been real friendly, though. She never appreciated my efforts in teaching her the "subtler arts", as he called it.

But, back to the real story. Time went on, jobs went on, and eventually I was told to watch Quatre Raberba Winner, the infamous heir to an infamously dark fortune. And I'm the best. So, I went about it perfectly.

…Okay, almost perfectly.

God, the first time I saw Duo it was like looking in a mirror. Everything I could have been if he hadn't taken me in was staring me in the face. Well, glaring, actually, but who really cares?

I broke the rules. I got attached. I made friends. I gave up my place in the shadows to chat with them, to get along with them, to feel friendship. Maybe even a little love, too. I'll admit I've got a little crush on Duo, but come on, who doesn't? He's just plain hot. Then again, so is Quatre…

Anyway, I broke the rules, and it cost me dearly.

I panicked the first time I realized it was THE Heero Yuy my boys were hanging out with. And don't say that's an overreaction- it's not. Yuy gives new meaning to the phrase 'mad scientist'. And have you even SEEN his art? It's creepy.

I wanted out. So, I decided to finish my job, and then I could go back home and pretend I'd never met my boys and I'd never had friends and everything would be normal again.

It's too bad things didn't work out that way. I don't want to be stuck owning a scrap yard the rest of my life.

x---x

A/N: YAY! Specials! 11.2 IS coming, never you mind. And HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME! WHEEE! I hope you guys have enjoyed my present to you! I had plenty of fun writing it.

I have a request, though. When reviewing, please suggest something to improve on. POLITELY, but still constructive. Thank you! (And not "update sooner". I'm already trying to work on that one…)

READER RESPONSES (And WOW are there lots of 'em…I love you guys!):

ms trick: (takes the cookie while the muse is mid-orgy) Yum! Thanks! I'm glad you liked last chapter; I was actually pretty worried. Thanks for the cookie!

Sefarina Malaika: You need more, you got more! Hope you don't hurt yourself doing that little happydance of yours…

Kaaera: Actually, 'prplsldr' is supposed to be "Purple Soldier", but it does make "Purple Leader", too. Hadn't actually noticed that…clever. And I LOVE how you talk about random stuff in your reviews! Then I can feel like I'm actually having a conversation with you, albeit a rather delayed one… Huh. You know, maybe I should just do that? (shrug) Well, tell me whatcha think. Thanks, as always! And don't worry, I'm (usually) intentionally confusing. It makes me feel clever.

Duet: Awww, you're so niiice! I wrote more! Woo! I'm about as excited as you, honestly…I was utterly STUCK for a while there…o.O Oh well. Not anymore! YAY!

BrokenChains: Special request granted! And I love you too!

KawaiiTenshi27: I'll probably be emailing you mid-chapter 12 for Latin help, if that's okay with you. You'll get spoilers and EVERYTHING! How thrilling! All those little interactions make me all squishy and happy inside, too. I feel stupid, but it's true.

Hey there!: Well, request granted! I too am fond of Crazy!Relena…then again, I'm her writer…(blush) But hey, thanks for reviewing!

SouriMaxwellYuy068: Hah. You must hate me; you got the special, but absolutely NONE of the answers you wanted. Oh well. Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you love the characters!

Lost-Remembrance: Request granted! Glad you liked part I!

Serenity Cathedral/serena429: Oh look, you changed your name! And look, I actually DID update pretty dang fast! I'm so proud of me!

Lizzie: Aww, I got my grammar complimented…(blush) You're so sweet! I'm glad you like Prodigy!

K.L.W: Request granted! And there's definitely more humor, never you mind. (And Sanitarium's going to be featured rather soon, so yay! More Metallica.) Stunt? What stunt? (innocent look)

El Terrible Fizzy: I…LOVE…YOU…TOO, although I'm rather concerned about how I'd live in your closet. Well, unless it's a walk-in with an internet connection. Then it'd be just fine. ;)

Noroi-Inu: I updated! The insanity of how fast, too! It's all from those darn puppy eyes…but hey, you wanna pet Trowa/Quatre, I ain't gonna stop you. I'd just warn you they're a mite possessive of each other…

Ezzy: I am MADLY in love with useful feedback, and therefore your reviews. They're worth waiting for.

gods sent angel: Well, sorry you had to suffer through Relena being in the scene. But hey, at least you didn't have to sit and stare at your computer for too long this time! Yay for that! You know, I HATE canon-Relena, but Prodigy-Relena I'm kind of fond of…crazy. Not monumentally, mind, but fond nonetheless.

Artemis: …Stealing Prodigy? (tries to restrain twitching eyebrow) Okay then…(twitch twitch)

MistressofHeaven: Oh, wow. I feel truly honored. Thank you for thinking little old Prodigy's worth your review!

Souten: Aww, thank you! I feel so loved! Hope you enjoyed the special(s)!

And, as always, THANKS FOR READING! Review if you feel like it!