Genre: Drama/Romance
Rating: T
Notes: My latest GSD fanfic - where I shall totally change parts whereby I actually disliked in its' main series. Therefore, a total Alternate Universe - this story will be.
Pairings: Auel/Lunamaria & Athrun/Meyrin
Chapter 14 - Athrun Zala and his return to the ZAFT ...
--
Cosmic Era 73, October 11
GMT: + 17 30 hours
Venue: Carpentaria Military Base, Minerva's Hangar
Athrun Zala stepped down from the Savior in his full piloting gear, to find himself being surrounded by a group of onlookers. With the exception of the Captain, and Vice-Captain - nearly every members on board of the said fleet was present. Placing his briefcase by the side, Athrun made a move to remove the helmet from his head - revealing his identity to each and everyone whom had gathered around him.
Handing his helmet over to one of the fellow technician on board whom was standing by his side, Athrun Zala took a moment to assess the crowd in front of him. Before he was able to say anything, the voice of Shinn Asuka was heard from behind the crowd.
"It's you - why are you here?! " There was a pause, as Shinn appeared to be noting his piloting gear before speaking up, again. "Why are you back with the ZAFT - again? "
"... " Athrun Zala was at a loss of speech, apparently - while the rest of the crew members had noticed his 'FAITH' badge and was currently saluting him, with respect. Shinn Asuka, alone was pointing fingers at him and questioning him for the reasons behind his re-enlisting with the ZAFT Forces.
That was not all, judging from the former's slack appearance - it would appeared that Shinn Asuka had yet to notice his being a fellow member of the 'FAITH' squad. From the corner of his eyes, he could not help but smile in response - upon the sight of Meyrin nudging the still oblivious Shinn and quietly whispered to the former of his current position being the highest among them all.
Although, Athrun was very much aware of the sharp glance being directed towards him by the younger redhead. He knew there would be a questioning session of sort, coming up as soon as the official introduction of his joining the Minerva crew was being announced by the Captain. However, that would come later - for he had every intention to locate the Captain and handed over the mission for the Minerva to the former, fast.
A laughter nearly threaten to spill forth, when his eyes caught the pouting look on Meyrin's expression upon Shinn handing over all the purchased items to the younger redhead for safe-keep while the former saluted him, with respect. Hurriedly, he directed a nod of acknowledgement towards the now respectful Shinn Asuka and brought up his request - to speak to the Captain of the fleet.
For a while, Shinn appeared as if he wanted to volunteer himself for the task but, before Shinn could do so - someone had already beaten him to the task.
"In that case, I'll lead you over to the Captain's room ... " The melodious voice of Meyrin Hawke sounded out, causing each and every head to shift towards the usually shy, and timid redhead - still holding on to Shinn's purchased items.
Athrun Zala nodded politely, while sighing inwardly - he knew there was no point in trying to escape from the questioning session. After all, questions were bounded to be directed towards him - regardless of whom was the one playing guide for him. Between Shinn and Meyrin, Athrun Zala would opted for the latter - because he knew that the redhead's questions would be easier for him to answer.
--
GMT: + 17 45 hours
Venue: Minerva
Fifteen minutes later, Meyrin Hawke was seen leaning casually against the wall of the corridor awaiting for Athrun Zala's arrival. The former had went off to the changing room, to change out from the stiff piloting suit of the 'FAITH' Squad. The sound of the automatic door sliding open beside her, caused the sixteen year old redhead to look up in response.
As expected, the blue-haired Coordinator being known by the name of Athrun Zala was now standing in front of her - still carrying that briefcase of his. Meyrin glanced at the briefcase for a moment, before beckoning for the solemn male figure to follow her lead to the Captain's private room.
Since Meyrin was still busy considering about the questions to ask Athrun Zala in private, the sudden sound of the said male's voice nearly caused her to yelp aloud in surprise. Turning towards the culprit behind her sudden loss of composure, whom was now eyeing her with amusement. Meyrin threw the former a look of annoyance, before gritting out.
"You find this amusing, don't you?! "
Athrun Zala appeared to be considering her words, before plastering on a look of stern expression. Despite his utmost effort at hiding his amusement from being seen, Meyrin still managed to catch sight of the hints of laughter sparkling in the depths of his emerald eyes.
"Hmph! " Meyrin responded, sounding irritated before throwing her nose up in the air - pretending not to see the blue-haired Coordinator's expression.
"Alright, enough of the teasing ... let's get down to business ... " Athrun's sudden change in speaking tones, caught the attention of the annoyed redhead as the former promptly shifted her eyes back towards the solemn 'FAITH' member.
"What do you mean by getting down to business? " Meyrin asked, frowning in puzzlement.
Athrun pressed the button for the elevator as he responded, "Nothing really - just wondering when did you guys departed from the Kingdom of ORB ... "
"... " There was a moment of silence, as Meyrin contemplated on a suitable response to the question that the former had just inquired her about. Finally, she decided on relating a half-truth, leaving out the part of them being ambushed by the Alliance Forces as soon as they ventured out from the Kingdom of ORB's territory.
"Erm ... a day or so, after your departure for PLANTs. Since the repairing work had been completed, and there really was no point for us to linger around ... We decided to leave, soon after ... However, we did remember to inform the Headquarters over at the PLANTs about our early departure from the country ... " Meyrin said, choosing her words carefully as she did so.
Upon her response, Athrun Zala had turned to look at her - strangely. Feeling self-conscious, Meyrin frowned and asked. "What are you thinking about, and why are you staring at me - like that? "
"... Nothing, its' just ... the Chairman told me to head down to ORB and meet up with you guys. So I'm a little confused about what you had just informed me earlier on ... " Athrun Zala responded, with a casual shrug of his shoulders.
Now, it was Meyrin's turn to get confused. She did recalled sending off an official report to the ZAFT Headquarters over at the PLANTs about the Minerva's departure from ORB, heading for Carpentaria - prior to their departure from the country, itself. Therefore, it make no sense for Athrun Zala to have not caught wind of the news before his departing for Earth.
Moreover, their Vice-Captain had also raised the request form for a 'Nebula' badge for Shinn's achievements' during the battle outside of the ORB's territory when they were ambushed by the Alliance Forces. That particular request had been raised and brought up to the Council's attention, as soon as they arrived at the Carpentaria Military Base - safely, yesterday morning.
Considering the fact that Athrun Zala had only departed from the PLANTs earlier on in the day, there should be no reason why he was not told of the Minerva's absence from the Kingdom of ORB. However, before Meyrin could voiced her doubts - Athrun Zala had stunned her with yet another query of his.
"Huh? Sorry, I beg your pardon ... I wasn't listening before ... " Meyrin told Athrun Zala, despite knowing full well that she had heard each and every word coming from the former's lips.
"Its' okay, I was asking to see if you had any idea about what was going on in ORB ... " Athrun Zala repeated, sounding troubled.
"No ... not exactly, other than the fact that the country is now part of the Alliance party ... and that Princess of yours had been literally kidnapped from her wedding altar ... " Meyrin responded, casually but keeping her eyes on her friend's facial expression while dropping the bombshell information on him.
First, there was the eyes widening in shock and surprise - then followed by an expression of absolute disbelief, before Athrun landed his serious eyes upon Meyrin for an explanation of sort.
Meyrin sighed and said, "It's true, I'm not trying to bluff you ... This came out in the news headline - you can go check the web broadcast if you like ... Anyway, although its' not confirmed - but there's a rumour out there that claimed 'Freedom' to be the one whom kidnapped the Princess of ORB. "
The rest of the journey to the Captain's room were continued in silence, Meyrin was allowing the blue-haired Coordinator sufficient time to digest the information which she had just relayed on to the former. For now, her task was accomplished and she had already fixed an appointment with Abby, another fellow CIC officer from the Minerva to head out shopping for daily necessities.
"Here, this is where I'll leave you ... I had something else planned - right now. However, I'll be free later, around eight or so ... If you want to continue the conversation with me, you know where to find me, naturally ... " Meyrin told the silent blue-haired pilot standing next to her, before turning on her heels and disappeared down the hall-way.
--
GMT: + 20 00 hours
Venue: Archangel Bridge, Underwater
The Archangel crew, together with Cagalli were now discussing their next possible action to be taken. Following their quick escape from the Kingdom of ORB's territory, after the abduction of the blonde - they had lied low for quite some time before approaching the neighbouring country for their assistance to help hide the Archangel for some time.
Since, the said country used to receive financial assistance from the Kingdom of ORB - they had obliged easily, but had told the Archangel crew to keep a low profile while they were hiding in their country.
Now with the help of the floating satellite which they had came prepared beforehand, they were able to keep an eye out on the news going on, outside in the world. Due to the current world situation, the crew members were finding themselves having trouble with deciding their next possible actions. Anyone with eyes would be able to tell that this time, the war had been instigated by the Earth Alliance Forces - but with the incident of Lacus nearly being assassinated, the images of the war seemed to be blurred out again.
"Damn, why is it that the news were always going on and on about the situation over at the Eurasia areas? What about the PLANTs? Why aren't there any information coming in from the PLANTs? " Cagalli frowned, glancing at the screen that reflected the news broadcast from all over the world.
There was initially a moment of silence, before Lacus Clyne enlarged the screen playing on her CIC control panel - putting it up on the main screen for all to see. On screen, it showed her mirror-image and a newly packaged "Lacus Clyne" having a concert for all to see.
"What on earth is this?! " Cagalli voiced aloud, glancing over to the pink-haired Coordinator for an explanation or sorts.
Lacus said nothing but shrugged, before commenting. "Well, this is the only thing that came from the PLANTs. Therefore, I believed - life still proceeds on as per normal, I presumed. "
Cagalli's mouth open and closed, but there was nothing she could have said in response to Lacus statement. In the end, she settled for a growl of agitation and commented. "If only Athrun's around ... that guy, claiming to head over to the PLANTs for a negotiation with the Chairman ... but until now, he's still not back ... Just what exactly was going on up there at the PLANTs ... "
Beside the blonde, Kira Yamato was frowning up at the screen showing the image of Lacus impersonator and mulling over the current situation. He did not bothered with a response to the frustrated blonde, in fact, he had no intention of saying anything to his twin sister until information of absolute certainity had been received from the Terminal or the Eternal crew about Athrun's decision. So far, the terminal had contacted him with the information that Athrun Zala had somehow, being asked to return to the ZAFT Forces.
However, after their escape from the Kingdom of ORB - they had yet to receive any other information from the Terminal crew. Maybe it was inconvenient for the Terminal crew to contact them while their location remained unknown and hidden, or it was simply due to the current situation out front that the Terminal decided to wait until the situation was stabled before making an attempt to contact them - or it was to simply lie low so that no one up in the PLANTs could get a hold on Lacus whereabouts.
Kira had no idea, therefore until there's further information received from the Terminal - Kira Yamato would keep whatever he was thinking about, solely to himself. At most, he would only revealed them to Lacus if the former did asked him for his opinions and thoughts.
--
GMT: + 20 30 hours
Venue: Minerva's Cafeteria
Meyrin Hawke was having dinner with Abby Windsor, when the fellow blonde CIC officer suddenly eyed her with amusement and interests. Quirking an eyebrow towards the former, Meyrin was about to question Abby for the strange behavior when the sound of a male voice, was heard.
/Oh I see ... so that's why Abby was shooting me weird looks ... / Meyrin thought inwardly to herself, as she turned around to face her childhood friend cum crush.
"Yes, is there anything I could perhaps help you with ... Athrun-san? " Meyrin asked, her voice sounding flat.
Athrun appeared stunned for a moment by her tone of voice, before the stunning expression gave way to awkwardness.
"... " Meyrin sighed, as she could not helped but wonder - what exactly was wrong with the usual Athrun Zala whom never seemed to waver in his thoughts. Turning to Abby Windsor, Meyrin politely excused herself from the former's company and shifted her attention to the awkward male standing behind her.
"Come along then, since your expression reflected awkwardness - I could only assumed that whatever you had wanted to discuss or talk with me was something, more personal? " Meyrin asked, as she made a move to leave the cafeteria for somewhere else where it would be more suitable for a private conversation.
"Erm... Well ... " Athrun murmured, under his breath as he made a move to follow the younger redhead towards the former's living quarters.
Once the two of them were inside the assigned room of Meyrin Hawke, the owner of the room decided to break the awkward silence which hung between them, by taking the initiative to speak up.
"So, what's on your mind? " Meyrin asked, dropping herself casually onto her bed and stared up at the stoic Coordinator for a response.
Athrun Zala hesitated for a second, before responding. "Actually, its' nothing ... I've checked with the Captain. The former was telling me the same thing, as you did before. I was actually wondering if you had any ideas about why things had ended up in this manner ... "
Meyrin Hawke stared, finding it hard to believe what she had just heard coming from the usually confident Coordinator standing opposite her. "Excuse me, did I hear you correctly? You are asking me if I had any idea of why things ended up in this manner? Shouldn't I be the one whom should be asking you such things? After all, you knew them better than I do - isn't that so? "
"Yeah well, now that you've mentioned it ... nevermind, forget what I've said earlier. Its' just, I guess - I'm confused ... " Athrun finally responded, feeling the sudden urge to pull at his hair in frustration.
Silence, before Meyrin spoke up - again.
"Don't think too much, just take one step at a time and we'll see how things developed from there ... Anyway, what else did you talk about with the Captain? I've heard rumours about the Vice-Captain being rather unhappy, since your conversation with the Captain ... What exactly happened after I left you to your own devices? " Meyrin said, changing the subject.
Glad to have a change in conversation topic, Athrun was more than willing to go along with the flow and filled the curious redhead in on his conversation with the Captain. There was no point in keeping the mission details a secret, since the Captain would be announcing them to the crew in time. By the end of the summary about the events that transpired in the Captain's room that resulted in the Vice-Captain's unhappiness, Meyrin was having trouble controlling her laughter from erupting.
It turns out, the Vice-Captain was unhappy about Athrun Zala being the same rank as their Captain since they had been both listed under the 'FAITH' Squad. That also indicated that Athrun Zala was at least a rank above of the Vice-Captain of the fleet, henceforth - the reason behind the unhappiness of the Vice-Captain was jealousy.
Meyrin and Athrun shared a look among themselves, before Meyrin erupted into laughter and Athrun chuckling despite his gloomy mood.
to be continued
Date started: 16/02/08
Date completed: 18/02/08
Date edited: 18/02/08