( If this one is weird, it's because I thought it up when I had fever, so... )
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It was almost lunchtime. Looking at her watch, Murrue smiled happily as she wiped the oil from her hands with an old rag. He would be here soon.. She and Mwu had been married for a few weeks now, but it still only felt like a couple of days. He came to visit her every lunchtime, driving all the way from the academy just so they could eat lunch together. It was really sweet of him, but it still embarrassed her slightly, so they always went somewhere quiet and out of the way, so no-one would see.
Taking out the lunchbox from her bag stashed in the office, she was surprised by two strong arms wrapping around her, and kisses on her cheek, which made her giggle.
"Quit that! People could be watching!"
Mwu laughed, and kissed her again. "So? Let them watch..."
Cheeks bright pink, Murrue managed to push him off, and the two made their way to the overhead gantry in the main dock at the facility, sitting in a quiet corner. Sometimes they shared lunch, sometimes they ate their own, and sometimes they forgot to eat at all, just enjoying the other's company, even though they knew they would be together when they got home.
Erica smiled as she saw them sitting together, his arms wrapped around her. She remembered it had been the same when she had just been married, how she and her husband had been practically inseparable. That was why she didn't say anything to Murrue, even though him visiting her everyday for lunch was a breach of protocol...
A few hours later, Murrue was hard at work on the shipboard flight panel of Kusanagi, humming tunelessly to herself.
"Murrue?"
The auburn-haired woman jumped, and spun around to see her friend standing there. "Erica! You scared me!"
Erica grinned, and came to sit in the other pilot's seat. "So, I see things are going pretty well for you and your husband, huh?"
Murrue blushed, hiding her face behind a curtain of dark hair. "Well, I...er..." She fiddled nervously with the wedding ring she wore, not meeting her friend's eyes "Is...is it a problem? Him being here every day. I understand that he's not really meant to, but I..."
"It's fine, don't worry about it. So, when will you have your honeymoon?"
Murrue blinked. "Huh? We've already had it. Remember, we had to take our honeymoon before the wedding. We went to that ski resort..."
Erica sighed. "That's not much of a honeymoon...Okay, you're taking next week off."
"What?"
"Newlyweds need time alone together to get used to the idea of being married. That's what honeymoons are for. Trust me."
Murrue's marigold eyes were wide. "But...but...what about Mwu?"
Erica smiled again. "Don't worry about that. I bet I can persuade the academy big-wigs to let him take the week off too. Either stay at home, or book somewhere nice. Somewhere hot this time."
Murrue tried to protest, she really did, but it was no use. Even someone as stubborn as she was couldn't win against Erica once she had made her mind up...
That evening, Mwu was delighted when she told him the news. "Really? We get to have a proper honeymoon? Where shall we go this time?"
Together, the couple scanned brochures and advertisements, looking for the perfect place. They eventually settled on an out-of-the-way beach resort, where they could be alone together as much as they wanted, and they wouldn't be disturbed.
When they reached the resort the next week, they knew they had made the right choice. The hotel room was huge, luxurious, with a large bed, and an equally large bathtub. Mwu's face lit up, and he wrapped his arms around his wife, pulling her onto the bed.
"So..." he whispered in her ear, his breath tickling her neck. "What shall we do first?" Murrue laughed, trying to wiggle free.
"First, we can go for a walk..." she giggled, managing to escape his grasp. He pouted. "Awwww..."
But Murrue prevailed, and they were soon walking along the seashore in the moonlight, hands entwined, completely happy with the other's company. The resort town was tiny, with only a few shops and restaurants, so it didn't take long to explore, and soon the pair were on their way back to the hotel room.
"So, which shall we test out first? The bed, or the bathtub?" he asked quietly, hands caressing her waist. Murrue blushed. "I think...the bathtub first. But...not yet." She made her way to the balcony, eyes closing as the cool evening breeze washed over her.
"It's so peaceful here..." Mwu joined her, sitting on a chair as he looked out to sea, the view perfect.
"Are you glad we came here?" she asked softly, glancing at him. He nodded. "Yeah.."
But something seemed wrong. Murrue studied her husband for a few moments, watching as he looked at her, then away again. He never met her gaze.
"What is it?"
"Oh, nothing.." he replied quietly, looking away again. He was trying to hide something, but he really wasn't very good at it. Murrue could easily work out that Mwu wanted to tell her something, but he wasn't sure how to. His eyes were troubled, shifting to her, then away again.
"What is it?" she asked again. "You can tell me..." He shook his head, long blonde hair flying. "No. No, I can't..."
Murrue smiled. "Now, didn't I tell you that you could trust me with anything? Please?"
Taking a deep breath, Mwu began. He told Murrue all about the last two years, about the past he had kept hidden from her. Neo's past. Everything he was ashamed of, everything that still gave him nightmares. All his secrets, all the things he had done as Neo. It was very late night by the time he had finished, the moon high in the sky. He looked up at his wife, tears in his eyes. He'd needed to get it off his chest, but he wasn't sure whether telling her had been the right choice.
I'm scared. I know I had to tell her, but..but..what if things are different now? What if she...
Murrue's eyes were wide, the tears streaming down her cheeks as she pressed her hands to her mouth. Guilt stabbed through Mwu.
"I'm sorry.." he whispered. "I should have told you earlier, before the wedding. Then you could have decided whether you still wanted to marry me or not after the things you'd heard. I guess I was selfish..or scared. I should have told you before...but I wasn't able to before the wedding. I was afraid..that you'd reject me..."
He looked down. "It's your choice. Now..you know what I am, it's your choice..."
Murrue could hardly believe what she'd just heard...that he'd been made to do things like this during the last two years. No wonder he still had nightmares. Reaching out, she took his hand, squeezing it gently. The tears still fell, but she knew that however bad she felt, he had to be feeling much worse.
"It's okay, it's okay. Didn't I say that it wasn't your fault? That I'd forgive you no matter what?" He looked up at her, incredulous expression on his handsome face. "How? How could you forgive me for something like that?"
"Because I love you, and because that person..he wasn't you. No, hear me out.." she said, seeing that he was about to protest. "It was what you'd been ordered to do. You didn't know. If you'd had your memories, it would have been different. My Mwu would never do anything like that...and he didn't.." Murrue pulled him close, and he rested his head on her shoulder.
"You mustn't worry about it anymore. There's no way that I wouldn't have agreed to marry you, not even if I'd known all this before. So don't worry...it's all right.."
A few tears soaked into the blue dress she wore, then Mwu pulled away. "Thank you so much.." he whispered, his lips meeting hers in a grateful, loving kiss.
When they broke for air, she smiled. "There, you see? Everything's all right.You've been holding all that inside for so long...ever since the end of the war, and I'm glad you were finally able to tell me." Her smile grew. "You need to relax now. How about we try out that bathtub now?"
Mwu finally smiled back, the expression happy, relieved. "That sounds like a good idea to me. I wonder if it's big enough for two?"
Murrue giggled, cheeks pink. "We'll soon find out, won't we?"
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( Here we is. I wanted to write a story where Mwu was finally able to tell Murrue-san about the things he'd done as Neo-san. I don't have a clue how bad it really was, but given that he was under Djibril's direct command, my guess is that he must have been made to do some terrible things. But I'm sure that Murrue-san would forgive him no matter what...
Please read and review! )
