Author's note: I do not own Gundam Wing or its characters. Both Zechs and Noin are nineteen years old. This is set during Episode 16. Some of these chapters have been posted before as part of This Kiss.
Connections
Noin knew that she probably shouldn't be surprised by Relena's recklessness at this point, but she had never expected the girl to actually fly between two fighting mobile suits. That really was not a good place to be right now. She listened in on Relena's conversation with both Heero and Zechs until battle was starting up again. Then she called Relena. That girl needed to get out of there now.
Relena was not exactly pleased to hear from her. "Miss Noin, I misunderstood you. I
thought you were sincere. How can you just sit by and watch this? This is neither a duel nor a match. They're just killing each other!"
Noin sighed. "Precisely. I deserve your contempt, but I can't help it. I believe in Colonel Zechs. I'm not about to interrupt any he plans on doing."
Relena turned away from the screen. "Heero! Defeat that man! Anyone associated with a foul group like O.Z. is an embarrassment to the Sanc Kingdom. Go ahead! Kill him!"
"Stop it, Relena!" Noin was not going to let her make this worse than it already was. Not when Zechs' life was at stake. "Please stop. It's a fact that he's associated with O.Z., and I don't deny that some mistakes were made. I won't explain it away with his love for the Sanc Kingdom."
And then Noin did one of the things she had to have Zechs deal with himself. "But Relena, no matter what destiny awaits you, you mustn't do anything as deplorable as wishing for the death of your own brother."
"Brother?" It was clear that Relena had no clue about that connection. "He's my brother?"
Noin sighed; she had wanted Zechs to deal with this himself for several reasons. This really wasn't her story to tell.
"Since the Peacecraft monarchy fell to the Alliance he's had his heart set on revenge. Given the difficulties of gathering power within the ruined Sanc Kingdom, he chose to join O.Z. to get closer to the Alliance. He waited, donning a disguise he called Zechs Marquise." Noin was sticking with the brief account for the moment. They didn't have time to cover the entire story, and an unsecured channel would not be the best place for that either. "Once OZ brought a new wave of chaos to the world, Zechs must've lost a sense of purpose in his life. Now he can only the soldier in himself when he fights the Gundams. That's what this battle is all about. Heero lives by his own rules, and Zechs is searching for the spirit to battle him on a level playing field, so once again he will be able to embrace the Sanc Kingdom and the Peacecraft name. He's even prepared to lose his life for this. I'll keep believing in him. I want to stay by his side. No matter what he does or searches for."
Noin mentally cursed, aware that her tongue had rather run away with her. Okay, clearly she had let a little too much of her personal issues in this show. Saying all of that where it could be overheard might not have been the best idea. She was willing to share her feelings with Relena on the subject, but it really wasn't the business of any of the other soldiers present. But at least Relena looked more thoughtful now.
"You're fond of my brother, aren't you, Noin?"
She let out a sigh. In for a penny, in for a pound. It was a little more than just fondness. "Yes. I do love him."
"Please watch over my brother forever."
Relena clearly didn't understand just how that worked. Noin was well aware that Zechs was much more likely to send her off with his sister or away someplace he considered safe. He was overprotective like that. But that wasn't a topic for the moment.
Instead, Noin offered, "I don't know if I'm able to. Colonel Zechs can be reckless at times."
That prompted a smile out of Relena. "It must be in the Peacecraft blood."
Alarms sounded before Noin could say anything else, calling her attention away from Relena. Noin straighten. It looked like the search party had reached them. She had better get this dealt with now.
