AN: Well, I think I have a new schedule thanks to the internet issue. One chapter every Monday work for everyone?
Aprilius One
The PLANTs were every bit as impressive as he remembered, Kira decided as his shuttle came in for a landing. Getting here hadn't been easy...Malchio hadn't taken much convincing, what with his almost supernatural ability to know Kira bore the 'seed', coupled with Lowe vouching for him. The problem had come in the fact of actually getting aboard the Reverend's shuttle. Kira had to ditch his uniform and borrow clothing from the Junker, and use a hat to cover his distinctive eyes. After all, he had launched from Kaguya...Orb.
It would have been bad enough trying to sneak around Carpentaria, when the only people in ZAFT who would recognize him were Waltfeld, Aisha and Athrun. Getting through the-admittedly lax-security at Kaguya had been an entirely different situation. Enough people in Orb would recognize him to make it more difficult than a ZAFT port.
And then, of course, there was his waning resolve. Being in Orb nearly made him cave and forget his mission...it had taken all of his willpower to not leave Malchio and go to the Athha mansion and ask Uzumi for aid. After all, he knew that Cagalli and his parents were going to think he was dead. Bad enough that the Archangel crew thought he was MIA...for his best friend outside Athrun and his parents to think he was dead...
I couldn't stay though... Kira forced himself to remember, as the shuttle docked, I need the Freedom, more than I need my secret.
Of course, by his 'secret' the young teen was thinking of his time-traveling. He had managed to keep it hidden so long that it was almost second nature to lie about it. And, as much as he disliked that fact, he probably would have taken the secret to his grave in all honesty. Now though? Well, while he could convincingly distract his friends aboard the Archangel who hadn't seen the battle with Athrun...
Neither his friend nor Cagalli would be so simple. Not when the Strike had been struck like it was.
"We're here Mr. Yamato," Malchio's voice broke through Kira's thoughts.
And indeed, the handful of people aboard the shuttle were moving to the exit. The Ultimate Coordinator stood up himself, and moved to follow them, all the while thinking of his immediate future.
"Cagalli is going to think I'm crazy," the young man muttered to himself, "I still think I'm crazy sometimes."
Malchio turned his head slightly, "What do you mean Mr. Yamato?"
Kira blinked, and felt his cheeks go red. He hadn't meant to say that loud enough to be heard...then again, Malchio was blind so he probably had better hearing than Kira did. Still, Malchio wasn't on the 'short list' of people the teen wanted to know his secret. That was limited to Cagalli and Athrun right now...primarily because it was the only way he could convince them not to kill him for what he had done.
That, and while he wasn't sure of how far his feelings for Cagalli had gone...he didn't want her to hate him. Nor did he want Athrun to hate him. And he was damn tired of lying to the both of them really.
"I'm just worried how they'll react when I go back to Orb..." Kira finally answered the Reverend.
The man seemed to accept that explanation, as he nodded slightly, a comforting look on his face. Kira smiled back slightly, well aware that the man couldn't actually see it. Still, it was the thought that counts.
It didn't take long before he had something rather more genuine to smile about. Standing ready to greet Malchio were two people and a handful of very discreet bodyguards. Siegel and Lacus Clyne to be precise. Sigel looked a bit confused to see Kira, but it was nothing like the look on Lacus' face. The pink-haired pop star's eyes went impossibly wide, before a wide grin spread across her face. She ran forward, Siegel frowning and calling for her to wait.
Of course, Lacus was having none of that, as she grinned at Kira.
"Kira! What are you doing here?" she asked, somewhat breathless.
The teen smiled back, "That's a long story. I'll tell you later."
Lacus looked a bit put-out but nodded, "I'll hold you to that!"
The two smiled at each other once more, before Siegel walked up to them. The curious look that had once been on his face was gone though. Instead, while it was kind, Kira could see a calculating look in his eyes. The elder Clyne may have been every bit as kind as his daughter...but he was rather more seasoned. After what had happened with Patrick...well, he was suspicious of most people these days. And he had no idea who Kira was, so it made sense that he was wary around the other Coordinator.
Regardless of the fact that Lacus seemed to know him. If anything that just made Siegel more suspicious, since he had to be wondering where Lacus had met Kira. Still though, Malchio was one of the select few that the elder Clyne trusted, so he was going to wait to question Kira until they were at the manor. Away from any soldiers loyal to Zala, who may overhear what they had to say.
"I'm curious who you are young man," the former politician began, "but as Malchio brought you and my daughter seems to know you, that can wait."
Kira nodded, "I can answer any questions you need sir."
"Hmm," Clyne replied, nodding slightly before turning to Malchio, "It's good to see you old friend. Shall we?"
The Reverend nodded, "Of course."
The little group clambered into a limousine that Siegel had brought, along with the bodyguards. As the engine roared to life, Kira looked out the window and sighed slightly. He could already tell that Siegel didn't trust him. Not that it was surprising, but it did cause some minor issues. At least Aprilius wasn't that large...large for a colony maybe, but it was small enough that it was only a few minutes of uncomfortable silence before they reached the Clyne Manor.
And that sight cheered the teen up considerably. The place was as beautiful as ever, and some of his best memories were his time here with Lacus. So it really was quite a calming sight for him.
"Welcome to my home," Siegel said, noting Kira's look.
The teen nodded back, "It's beautiful."
"Thank you!" Lacus piped up, grinning once more.
Siegel merely nodded, as he opened the door and the group stepped back out of the car. Once everyone was out, they moved into the house. Of course, the moment they were inside the house and away from any potential spies, Siegel turned to Kira and Lacus. The former moved closer to the girl, almost on instinct. Siegel rarely glared, but when he did...
Well, the man could give Rau Le Creuset a run for his money.
"Now that we are away from prying eyes," the older man began, "I do have to ask who you are young man."
Kira nodded slightly, "Kira Yamato."
Siegel stepped back slightly, a more confused look adorning his face. Naturally, he knew the name Yamato. Lacus had a bit of a gossiping streak to her at times, so he knew very well who had saved his daughter so long ago. Not to mention that Andy was, if anything, worse than the younger Clyne. So Siegel knew very well that Kira Yamato was the boy who had beat the Desert Tiger at his own game.
Now the question became, what was he doing in the heart of his 'enemy's' territory? Clyne knew well enough from what Lacus and Andy had told him that Kira didn't really consider ZAFT his enemy. More that they forced him into fighting to protect his friends. An admirable goal and one that he respected naturally, since a lot of ZAFT soldiers could learn from it.
It still didn't do a damn thing to explain this situation though.
"You are the Strike's pilot."
It was a statement, not a question. Kira could tell that easily enough.
"I was," the pilot nodded, "not anymore though..."
Siegel frowned, "And why is that, if I may ask?"
Kira shrugged, "It's a pile of scrap now. I only survived because I wasn't in the cockpit."
There was a story there, Siegel could tell that much. But if Kira didn't want to talk about it right away, forcing him would be counterproductive. So he simply nodded, and moved further into the house. Kira followed along, Lacus right beside him. The pop star started bombarding him with questions, while Siegel prepared some food. He had learned long ago that talking over a cup of tea or a hot meal loosened someone up.
And right now, he needed Kira loosened up somewhat. The pilot resembled nothing more than a tightly wound spring to him. He was talking with Lacus easily enough, but Siegel could tell that something was bothering Kira and keeping him mentally occupied. And really, he wanted to know what that was. Since it was quite likely that whatever was bothering the pilot was the reason he was in the PLANTs now, instead of back aboard the Archangel...destroyed Strike or not.
Siegel Clyne didn't like secrets after all...and he could tell that Kira Yamato had a large secret hidden away.
Onogoro Island, Orb Union
Cagalli Yula Athha sighed heavily as her aircraft landed in Orb. It was heavier than it had been when it left, the damaged Aegis sitting in its hold. The pilot of that machine was gone though...Athrun had been returned to ZAFT, as neutral Orb had no right to keep POWs. Regardless of the Princess' personal feelings on that matter of course.
She wished she could say the parting had been friendly enough, but Athrun was totally shattered and Cagalli had little to no pity for him. She wouldn't actively hurt Zala, but expecting anything more than anger and dislike for him was too much. So she had simply transferred him to a ZAFT submarine, sans the Aegis. Hey, Orb had built the thing in the first place, so it seemed fitting to confiscate it.
And it totally had nothing to do with getting back at Zala for killing Kira. Right.
"Are you okay Cagalli?" Kisaka asked, as a boat took the two back to shore while the Aegis was unloaded.
"Hardly," she replied, "let's just get home."
The bodyguard nodded slightly, "As you wish."
While he didn't argue with his charge, Kisaka could quite clearly see how much she was hurting. Cagalli may hide things like that well, but she was obviously in severe pain. The older man was hardly blind...he knew well how much Kira had meant to the Princess of Orb. She may not have realized it until he was gone, but Kisaka had. And so, he didn't say anything about her mood. He simply put a hand on her shoulder, and guided Cagalli onto shore.
The Princess didn't struggle against his grip much, thankfully. She just kept walking forward, lost in her own world. At least, until her head suddenly snapped up. Kisaka saw a look of pain flash through her amber eyes, before Cagalli forced that down. Instead, a determined expression took its place. An expression that fit much better on her face maybe, but he didn't know what was up with her.
"Cagalli?"
"Take me to Kira's parents," the Princess said.
The colonel blanched, "Cagalli, I'm not sure if..."
"If I can handle it?" the blonde replied, her tone sharp, "I can handle it Kisaka. Its better that Kira's parents hear this from me than some random soldier. They deserve that much don't they?!"
"Be that as it may...are you sure? I can tell you're hurting Cagalli, this will only make it worse."
Cagalli let out a sigh, "I'm that transparent to you am I? Fine, I'm hurting. I feel like someone tore my damn heart out...happy? But I want to be the one to tell Kira's parents. I owe him that."
"If you believe that, I won't stop you," Kisaka said, a small smile on his face, "and I am sure that Mr. Yamato would appreciate you doing this."
Cagalli's return smile was more of a grimace, but at least it was something. Kisaka still sighed as he called a soldier over to give them a ride to the Yamato house though. He hadn't been lying with what he said. If anything, the fact that Cagalli had openly admitted to being in pain just reinforced his opinion that she wasn't ready for this. The Princess he knew would have never outright admitted things like that...whatever she had felt for Kira had quite clearly pushed her beyond her normal limits.
And that really worried the Colonel. As it sat though, this was Cagalli's choice...not his.
So he merely went along with it, until they reached their destination. Because the Yamato household seemed to drive home the point that Kira wasn't going home.
"I can't believe it..." Cagalli muttered, where she thought Kisaka couldn't hear, "I can't believe he's gone..."
"Come on Cagalli," Kisaka replied, helping her out of the car. The pair walked up to the door of the house, whereupon Cagalli knocked on the door.
Caridad Yamato opened the door, her face lighting up when she saw Cagalli. The Princess had become good friends with Kira's mother, and a visit from her was something that both parents looked forward too. Of course, Caridad's face turned into a frown when she saw how red Cagalli's eyes were and how disheveled her blonde hair was. Sending a look at Kisaka, she just got a slight shake of the colonel's head. It wasn't his place to tell her why his charge was here.
"Cagalli? This is a pleasant surprise," the elder Yamato said, "why don't you come in?"
"Who is it Caridad?" Haruma's voice came from the living room.
"Cagalli and Colonel Kisaka," Caridad replied, as the little group began to sit down...sans Kisaka, who remained standing in the corner.
Haruma nodded, "Well, it's always nice to have you over Cagalli."
The Princess shifted uncomfortably, "Yeah..."
"Is something wrong?" Caridad asked.
Cagalli shifted again, her face turning downcast. She wanted to run from the room...she may have wanted to do this for Kira...but how do you tell someone's parents that their son wasn't coming home? She didn't know.
Damn it...what am I doing?
Forcing herself to calm down, Cagalli took a deep breath. She turned to fully face the elder Yamato's, both of whom were casting her somewhat worried looks now. The Princess knew she wasn't acting normally...but then again, what was normal about this situation? Nothing at all...nothing at all.
Damn it Kira...you should be here, not me!
"Mr. Yamato, Mrs. Yamato...I..." Cagalli began, her voice cracking ever so slightly.
Caridad was the first to realize what was going on. Regardless of her true relation to Kira, her motherly instincts kicked in. The purple-haired woman held a hand to her mouth, her eyes widening. A choked off sob left her mouth, before she turned and buried her head in her husband's shoulder. For his part, Haruma pulled his wife close to his side, his own eyes looking at the floor. Cagalli felt like kicking herself...she hated doing this to such kind people. Kira's parents had been so understanding and kind...and now she had just told them the one thing they had been fearing ever since Kira climbed into the Strike.
It was little wonder that Caridad had broken down like that. She had been opposed to Kira piloting that damn machine from the start. Haruma had too, but he had been determined to let Kira make his own choices. And look where that had lead him.
"How?" the older man asked simply, his wife in little condition to do it herself.
Cagalli swallowed, and explained everything. From what she knew after talking to Athrun anyway...everything she could tell them was still second-hand at best. Other than, of course, the sight that still haunted her...the ruined Strike.
"Athrun," Caridad managed to get out, "how could he do that to my baby?"
Haruma forced his voice to stay calm, "That's what I want to know."
"He...wasn't trying to," Cagalli said, not so much defending Athrun as trying to keep Kira's parents calm.
"So it was an accident then?" Kira's father said, his voice eerily calm now, "An accident that he took our son away from us? His best friend?"
The Princess nodded slightly, "That's what he told me...before he broke down. Athrun hates himself for what happened...for what that's worth."
Haruma's eyes roamed Cagalli's face, before he nodded himself. He saw that Cagalli was every bit as hurt by this as he was...and understood exactly what he felt. Maybe not as much, since Kira was just her friend, not her child. But at least she wasn't trying to defend Athrun.
For all that the younger Zala had been Kira's best friend, his father doubted he would ever forgive the boy. Asking him to forgive the man who killed his son...it just couldn't happen. No matter how close both Kira's parents had been to the Zala family.
"Kira..." Caridad murmured.
Haruma pulled his wife to his side again, before turning to Cagalli.
"Thank you for telling us...but we need time alone right now."
"I understand," Cagalli replied, moving to leave...before Caridad got her attention.
"Please, come back later," the older woman shakily said, "Kira would...want us to stay close."
Cagalli nodded, carefully hiding her face as she felt her eyes start to go wet again. Squaring her shoulders, she left the Yamato family to its grieving...heading back to Morgenroete. She was going to train, train hard, so that no other parents had to go through what Kira's were. If she had to fight to do that...then so be it. This damn war had gone on long enough.
AN: I know this chapter is a fair bit shorter than the last couple, but I don't like drawing things out for the sake of padding the word count. I think it works where it is personally...that's mostly because I wasn't going to give a few paragraphs for the Archangel when it was mostly stuff directly from the show that I could have used.
We won't be getting back to our favorite Alliance crew until next chapter, and even then its going to be a small portion since there isn't much to change, considering that:
A: Tolle's still alive so no grief-stricken Mir/Flay never got with Kira so no problems with her either.
B: Alaska will still be run by the exact same people since Halberton/Allster surviving has little impact on the highest levels of Alliance Military command.
C: This is primarily Kira's story y'know.
Now, onto the review replies:
Just a Crazy-Man, Lord Edric, thunder18, NinjaFang1331, Taira Yukiko, Taira Kaiko, HoneyCaramelSwirl, davycrockett100: Thanks for the reviews!
StrawHatLuffy94: I've got plans on where Flay's character is going. I've put too much work into her to not continue developing her after all.
edboy4926: Yeah, Kira didn't really think this one through very well. Call it tunnel vision...he's so focused on getting the Freedom, that he didn't put much thought into how he could have done things differently (say, letting Cagalli know he's alive and getting Orb's help to get to the PLANTs).
northernlion196: Cagalli has some ironclad self-control when she needs it. And shooting Athrun's head off wouldn't have brought Kira back...so she stopped herself, regardless of how she may feel about the younger Zala (read: she hates him but hates killing defenseless people more). I tend to agree on Astray...it's nice, and pretty darn good really. But it shouldn't try and insert itself into stuff that contradicts the show, since that's Mary Sue-syndrome.
Kurama's Foxy Rose: Getting captured is fairly important for Dearka's character arc/development.
Plutone-pilot: An excuse for the Archangel crew is fairly simple since they didn't see the Strike go boom-boom, just like in the show. Athrun and Cagalli on the other hand...well, there isn't an excuse that will work there.
I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter!