========================================
Role Reversal
By Sefilin
========================================
Disclaimers: Shin Kidousenki Gundam Wing copyright Sunrise,
Bandai, Sotsu Agency
Dedicated, as always, to Kellryn.
==========
Chapter Six
==========
JULIAN'S HOME UNIVERSE:
----------
"Julian-sama!" a voice yelled from behind Duo who dropped his
head briefly to keep from yelling aloud, or worse yet, swearing
where one of the throngs belonging to the media could hear. He'd
been hearing his doppelganger's name, with the honorific tagged on
the end, almost constantly since arriving at the peace talks that
morning, and it was driving him nuts. It was bad enough that they
weren't calling him Duo, but for the 'sama' to be added on the
end...
He had cultivated a habit of casualness and informality over
the years and this was absolutely _destroying_ it. All his ideas
about the essential equality of all people and the way such
honorifics were being thrown around without being earnt was a
travesty. Though, to give Julian his due, he did seem to have a
rather large amount of influence over large numbers of people, so
maybe it wasn't without justification.
Still, having to respond to a name of five, instead of two,
syllables was rather disconcerting, especially when spoken in an
unfamiliar, strangely dangerous and _very_ feminine voice.
He turned away from the door he had been heading for and
glanced around for the owner of the husky, breathless voice. His
eyes dropped on a gorgeous blonde, whose blue eyes were burning
almost fanatically as she drew closer.
Internally he grinned to himself, admiring the well-dressed
form of the girl and the fall of hair that almost equalled the
length of his in his original body. His hand reached automatically
for his braid at the thought of it. He rubbed the back of his neck
instead of wrapping a hand around the thick rope of hair and smiled
Julian Peacecraft's polite smile, before lowering his hand to his
side.
"Hello," he murmured as the girl grasped his hand and held
onto it as she gazed raptly at his face.
"Julian-sama, you were wonderful, as usual. Such conviction,
such strength, such passion! It's no wonder you're my idol!"
Duo tried to smother the urge to laugh, sure he would either
offend her or give his secret away. But the combination of hero-
worship, sincere admiration and mockery was one of the most amusing
things he'd seen in ages, especially considering it was directed at
him.
"Um, Thank you," he said instead, trying to remove his hand
from her death-grasp. The expression in her intense blue eyes
became muted as she loosened her hands from around his, though she
didn't let his hand go.
"I was worried when I heard you were sick. If anything had
happened to you, I don't know what I would have done, such a
tragedy would have been terrible."
"I'm rather glad myself, that it doesn't seem to be anything
serious," Duo smiled reassuringly at the blonde, remembering to
give himself an out, were he to disappear for another week.
"Ah? You are not fully recovered yet?"
"I'm afraid not."
The blue eyes began to sparkle with the same fervour as
previously, "Yet you still came to the peace talks today. How
brave, Julian-sama, I have another reason to admire you!"
Duo sighed inwardly, wondering what the heck was with the
girl's gushing that seemed so at odds with the intelligence that
lurked behind the fanaticism. There was also the fact that she
obviously knew him, had met him before. And no matter how
gratifying - and frightening - it was to know he was doing a
reasonable job of impersonating the Peacecraft, there was still the
danger that he would slip and she would become suspicious.
Fortunately, Heero chose that moment to arrive at his side.
He was looking particularly uncomfortable in the suit of clothes
Relena had forced him to wear, though really, the pristine white
with accents of orchid suited him surprisingly well. It served him
right for deciding Duo needed someone to keep an eye on him; he
smirked, watching the irritated swipe of the Japanese boy's hand
through his bangs. He, at least, had managed to sneak by in a red
jacket, with gold embroidered black lapels; a much more comfortable
combination of colours.
"Julian-sama, your brother is asking for you," Heero's voice
was absolutely flat when he spoke and Duo couldn't help but grin
faintly at the further indication of reluctance.
Relena had outdone herself, suggesting he serve as the
Peacecraft's secretary and gofer for the duration of the talks. So
far neither OZ nor Romefeller had identified him as a Gundam pilot,
so he was safe in one way, although his youth had been commented on
by many a diplomat here for the talks.
"Thank you, Heero," he nodded then turned back to the blonde,
bowing over her hand and touching it with his lips. "If you'll
excuse me?"
The blonde inclined her head gracefully, a strange look in
her eyes, and stood aside as Duo walked away at Heero's side.
==========
Duo turned to him with a grateful grin as soon as they were a
reasonable distance away from the blonde.
"Thanks, man. Any idea who that was?"
Heero raised an eyebrow and shrugged, "Dorothy Catalonia,
grand daughter of the current head of Romefeller."
"Strange girl..." Duo murmured.
"Aa."
Heero dropped back into silence as they continued on towards
the front doors of the Romefeller Foundation building where the
talks were being held. His fingers twitched as he considered the
unique chance he had, being here, to destroy a large number of the
people responsible for the war and his presence on Earth as a
Gundam pilot.
But his explosives were quite a distance away, and even his
trusty revolver had been removed from his person as he had walked
into the building, security being understandably tight. Then there
was the presence of Julian, Milliard and Treize to worry about;
regardless of his own opinions on the matter, he had been ordered
to make sure they survived.
"Heero?"
He turned his head towards Duo to let him know he was
listening, but continued to catalogue all the people he had the
opportunity of disabling, if not killing, but was not allowed to.
He sighed, there were times he wished he hadn't met Relena. It
would have made things a lot simpler not to have so loud a
conscience.
"I'd just like to say, that you look really good in that
suit, it really brings out the colour of your eyes."
It took a moment for the comment to register on Heero, but
when it did he gave the other boy his best death glare, which
phased him as little as it did the real Julian.
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. It was really no
wonder it was always a mess, what with Julian, Relena and, now,
Duo.
Then a hand was placed on his shoulder, swinging him around
to face the indigo-eyed boy, and he was startled by the serious
determination in them, "Heero, as soon as this thing's over, I'm
out of here. I need to get back home, as soon as possible, and I
can't if I'm sitting around talking to people like this."
Heero just looked at him, wondering where he was going, since
he seemed to be leading somewhere.
"I don't know if I can do this on my own though. I think
I've found a lead, but I haven't been able to hack all the way into
the system from the computers at the mansion and was hoping you
could."
Heero found himself caught by the sincere request and it's
nature, which reinforced, again, that this was Duo, not Julian. So
many of the little differences had been appearing since he'd
finally let go of the worst of his disbelief. He now found it hard
to believe he ever thought this person _was_ Julian.
"Look, man, I need to get back. The other guys, there's only
four of them, what with Julian useless, if he's there, and me gone.
Relena can't pilot Gundams either, so she's no good, not to mention
the fact that she's got the whole Absolute Pacifism thing going, so
wouldn't anyway. Heero, I _need_ to get back."
Heero nodded, knowing that they did need to get Julian back,
even if he didn't really want to. He was liking the fact that he
didn't have to worry about the crazy guy jumping him and glomping
him and generally being a nuisance. And he actually _enjoyed_
Duo's company, sort of. At least he exhibited common sense at
times.
"Okay."
"Really? Thanks, man!" he exclaimed enthusiastically,
drawing curious looks from around the room. He grinned at them all
apologetically, shrugging, and headed off towards Milliard again.
Heero followed slowly, watching the other boy manage to curb
the bounce in his step, though the happy grin remained, at a lesser
voltage than usual, but it was still there.
He didn't notice the blonde who was leaning casually back
against one of the columns at the side of the room where he and Duo
had been talking, half-obscured by heavy velvet curtains. A frown
sat on her face as she stepped out from behind the drapes and
followed the two of them with her eyes.
==========
DUO'S HOME UNIVERSE:
----------
Julian sat in the window seat of the house where he and the
Gundam pilots were staying, gazing out to where the sun was
falling, in a blaze of orange and red, into the sea. Above the
flames of sunset, the sky had turned a violet to match his eyes and
stars were appearing one by one, twinkling happily down at him.
But he wasn't in the mood for their cheer, and his eyes
returned to the golden sparkles jumping in a path across the sea,
from the sun towards his position. They burned into his eyes,
tears of strain forming as his eyes unfocused, looking through the
path, as though it would show him the way home.
He hated almost everything in this world he was stuck in. He
hated the fact that he couldn't _do_ anything; that the Gundam
pilots had begun to ignore him once they were convinced he was
Julian. He hated that they no longer had the time to sit down and
talk to him for five minutes, when he had all the time in the
world. He hated that he had to rely on Relena's visits to relieve
the boredom and loneliness that was swamping him.
And he hated that every time Heero looked at him it was with
a sadness he couldn't alleviate.
He'd never seen such a strong emotion in either Heero before,
apart from the rage that had brightened his eyes when Julian had
annoyed his own world's version. It hurt more than anything he
could remember, to know that the other him was loved so deeply by
this other Heero, so similar to the one he himself loved.
A bitter smile touched his lips as he wondered why he seemed
to be so unlovable to all the Heero's he met.
"Julian?" a soft voice asked from behind him, and he turned
to Relena, forcing his lips into a sweeter smile.
"Hello, Relena."
"Hi," she smiled gently back. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah. Just missing home."
Relena smiled in understanding, knowing what he was talking
about. After all her home - her family, her father and her past -
had been taken away from her at the beginning of the war, the
difference being she wasn't ever going to get them back.
"That doesn't surprise me. Do you mind if I join you?"
Julian shrugged, "No. It'd be nice to have someone to talk
to." He winced immediately afterwards, not meaning to have exposed
so much of the loneliness that had been exacerbated in this
unfamiliar world.
Surprisingly, instead of looking surprised and shocked by his
declaration, Relena's eyes showed only compassion, sympathy and
understanding, "You're lonely...?" she whispered quietly.
Blinking, Julian shrugged again, "I guess. You?"
Relena inclined her head and stated simply: "How couldn't I
be."
Julian knew exactly what she meant, having come from the same
situation. Being well known, with a whole heap of expectations
weighing on you was not conducive to the development of deep and
emotionally intimate relationships.
No surprise then, that both of them had fixated on Heero, who
was the first person either had met to not care about who they
were. He saw _them_, not their parents or social position.
It was rather ironic that the only person he truly disliked
in his world, the condescending and cruel Relena, was a different
version of the person he was closest to here. The two of them had
so much in common it was almost scary.
The silence that had fallen between them remained unbroken
until Relena glanced upwards suddenly, "Julian?"
"Mm?"
"Could you... would you, um, hold me? Just for a while?"
The sadness and loneliness in Relena's voice that found
echoes within himself drew forwards the threat of tears and he
nodded, swallowing thickly, "Yeah... if you'll...?"
Relena smiled, tears gathering in her eyes as she leaned
towards him and slipped tentative arms around his waist, laying her
head against his chest. Julian's arms came up to encircle her
also, pulling her into a more comfortable position before relaxing
into the embrace, allowing the warmth of physical contact to
comfort him. His cheek lay against soft hair and he smiled the
same smile Relena had been wearing, closing his eyes and just
holding on.
He had no idea how long the two of them remained entwined
there on the window seat drawing strength from one another in order
to face the world. As they sat, an unspoken understanding grew
between them, ensuring them the certainty of a true friend, even if
the other was a world away.
They were startled out of their quiet companionship when the
light switch was turned on, bathing the room in harsh, bright
light.
Drawing abruptly away from one another, they turned to the
door to find a frowning Heero staring at them in anger, jealousy
and puzzlement. Then his face was wiped blank, "We've found
something."
Julian slipped automatically back into the role he'd chosen
to play and, after sending a playful wink in Relena's direction, he
glided across the room and took possession of Heero's arm, gazing
up at him in adoration.
"Heero! Where have you been, Relena-neechan and I have been
waiting for you."
Heero snorted and tugged at the arm in Julian's grip before
growling, "Omae o korosu."
He glanced across to where Relena was rising, smiling at the
two of them. Then an extra sparkle appeared in her eyes and she
was suddenly there, grabbing hold of the arm Julian didn't have,
"We waited and waited, Heero, but you didn't come. Why don't you
ever come and kill me like you said you would?"
Julian laughed, liking Relena even more and appreciating the
sudden angry bewilderment on Heero's face as he looked at the two
of them, "You keep promising us you'll kill us, Heero, but you
never do. Why? What did we do wrong?"
"Baka," Wufei spoke concisely from behind Heero, peering in
the doorway. "We've found something that might help us get you
back to your world. Do you want to know about it or not?"
Julian's eyes went blank for a moment as reality reasserted
itself and he smiled at the Chinese pilot, "Sure. Tell us."
"Let go of me and I will," Heero mumbled.
A frown of psuedo-confusion appeared on Julian's brow, "But
Heero, I'm not stopping you."
"Omae o korosu," the Japanese boy stated again, more
emphatically, still stuck between Julian and Relena, who merely
giggled and altered their grip, dragging him to the nearest couch
and sitting him on it.
Then they gazed at him brightly and expectantly, waiting.
==========
JULIAN'S HOME UNIVERSE:
----------
"Okay then," Duo stated, slipping into the chair in front of
the computer, glancing up at Heero, Relena and Meiran.
"I found this research centre here and they're doing
_something_ related to dimension-ish things, but I can't get any
further than the information they have open to the public in
general. Everything else about the project is tied up behind
pretty heavy security. I've found four layers so far and each
one's harder than the last," a tiny amused smile played about his
mouth as he logged into the computer and quickly hacked into the
research centre's system. He ploughed quickly through the four
security layers then paused. "They've got someone there who's
pretty paranoid about security, I'd say. Anyway, you wanna give
the next layer a go?"
He stood, making room for Heero who sat and began typing.
"How'd you find out about this?" Relena asked quietly from
beside Duo, watching the monitor.
"Hmm? Well, the thing that the guy gave me back in my world
was probably science-y, if you know what I mean. It made sense to
look around for research centres around the area where I was when
everything happened," he shrugged. "There were quite a few around
for some reason, but most of them specialised in bio-chemical-type
stuff. I concentrated on the others, finding out what they were
working on and came up with this as the nearest match."
Relena nodded, lifting her hand to point something on the
monitor out to Heero, finding Duo's finger at the same place at the
same time. They looked at each other and grinned as Heero made an
impatient sound in the back of his throat.
"Why don't you go do something else?"
Duo shook his head, "Nah. Thanks, man, but I gotta know.
Promise I won't bother you any more though, ne?"
"Same," Relena said and the two retired to sit on the other
side of the room, leaning up against the wall. Meiran joined them,
clasping her hands around her knees.
"Duo?" her voice was quiet.
Duo looked across at her with an eyebrow raised, "Yeah?"
She blushed, "Can you... can you tell me about Wufei? I
never really got the chance to know him, and I was wondering..."
Duo grinned at her, "Wufei... Heh, what can I say? He's this
great justice freak who constantly moans about women, the ultimate
in chauvinism and spends most of his time with 'Nataku'."
Meiran looked rather disappointed as he began, nodding at the
similarities between her memories and what Duo was saying, though
she found she was still surprised by the name by which Wufei had
chosen to call his Gundam. It made her think that maybe she had
meant something to her husband after all.
"But he's cool. He's a really good pilot, and despite what
he says when he mumbles about not knowing what justice is, he does
a good job of keeping it. It must've been hard for him to change
from being a scholar to being a warrior, but he managed. He still
thinks too much to be a really good soldier."
The Chinese girl liked that better than the first comments
Duo had made, smiling a little in pride and a certain amount of
sadness.
"Has he...?" Meiran blushed again and didn't continue.
Duo looked at her strangely for a moment then light dawned
and he shook his head, "Nah, he hasn't got a girlfriend..." Duo
trailed off as something dawned on him, "Though there _is_ Sally."
He grinned, "You'd like her. She can keep him in line, y'know, and
she won't put up with him being stupid or anything."
Meiran nodded, "Good. I'm glad. He was an idiot, really,
but..."
"But he's worth a little effort and needs a girlfriend to
show him how things are?"
A laugh made it's way out of Meiran, "Yeah."
Then a sly grin emerged on Duo's face, "What about you and
Trowa?"
Relena was the one that laughed this time, "See, Meiran, I
_told_ you it was obvious."
Meiran blushed again.
"I still think it's strange that it's not Quatre and Trowa
though. I mean, those guys seemed perfect for each other."
The two girls looked a little shocked at that.
"What!?"
"Trowa and _Quatre_!? You're kidding, right?"
Duo blinked, "I... didn't tell you?"
Meiran shook her head, wide-eyed and Relena bent a mild glare
his way, torn between asking for all the details and concern for
how her friend would take _that_ piece of information.
"Oh. Um, well, yeah, they're a couple. I think it was love
at first sight, ne? On Quatre's part anyway, it's kind of hard to
tell what's going on with Trowa. But Quatre finally got through to
him and," Duo shrugged, "They're happy."
Then Relena's glare and the glances she was sending towards
Meiran caught up with him and a slightly worried look appeared in
his eyes as he watched the Chinese girl for her reaction, ready to
make amends if necessary.
Meiran stared blankly at nothing for a few long, tense
moments, then laughed, startling her two friends. She smiled at
them, "You know, they _would_ make a cute couple, if I wasn't
around."
"I'm done," a flat, nasal voice broke in on them and they all
looked up at Heero who had spun around to face them from in front
of the computer. He sent a curious look in Duo's direction,
flicked his gaze to Meiran then settled back on Duo, who rose and
approached.
"The project is researching the possibility of using
dimensional energies and Dr. Keller has apparently made a break
through with the invention of the Keller. It's supposed to create
minor rifts between dimensions and gather energy from it," Heero
swung aside and let Duo look at the monitor where a picture was
displayed.
It was a small rounded object, shining in metallic glory and
superimposed over a set of blueprints.
Duo looked at it for a second, "Well, cover it with a towel
and it'd look exactly like the thing that probably brought me
here." He grinned widely at the other three, "I guess this means
we go and visit Dr. Keller."
==Owari, Chapter Six==
Thanks to Carm for suggesting Dorothy's appearance, we're sure to
be seeing more of her ^_^
http://www.geocities.com/sefilin/
sefilin@yahoo.com
Role Reversal
By Sefilin
========================================
Disclaimers: Shin Kidousenki Gundam Wing copyright Sunrise,
Bandai, Sotsu Agency
Dedicated, as always, to Kellryn.
==========
Chapter Six
==========
JULIAN'S HOME UNIVERSE:
----------
"Julian-sama!" a voice yelled from behind Duo who dropped his
head briefly to keep from yelling aloud, or worse yet, swearing
where one of the throngs belonging to the media could hear. He'd
been hearing his doppelganger's name, with the honorific tagged on
the end, almost constantly since arriving at the peace talks that
morning, and it was driving him nuts. It was bad enough that they
weren't calling him Duo, but for the 'sama' to be added on the
end...
He had cultivated a habit of casualness and informality over
the years and this was absolutely _destroying_ it. All his ideas
about the essential equality of all people and the way such
honorifics were being thrown around without being earnt was a
travesty. Though, to give Julian his due, he did seem to have a
rather large amount of influence over large numbers of people, so
maybe it wasn't without justification.
Still, having to respond to a name of five, instead of two,
syllables was rather disconcerting, especially when spoken in an
unfamiliar, strangely dangerous and _very_ feminine voice.
He turned away from the door he had been heading for and
glanced around for the owner of the husky, breathless voice. His
eyes dropped on a gorgeous blonde, whose blue eyes were burning
almost fanatically as she drew closer.
Internally he grinned to himself, admiring the well-dressed
form of the girl and the fall of hair that almost equalled the
length of his in his original body. His hand reached automatically
for his braid at the thought of it. He rubbed the back of his neck
instead of wrapping a hand around the thick rope of hair and smiled
Julian Peacecraft's polite smile, before lowering his hand to his
side.
"Hello," he murmured as the girl grasped his hand and held
onto it as she gazed raptly at his face.
"Julian-sama, you were wonderful, as usual. Such conviction,
such strength, such passion! It's no wonder you're my idol!"
Duo tried to smother the urge to laugh, sure he would either
offend her or give his secret away. But the combination of hero-
worship, sincere admiration and mockery was one of the most amusing
things he'd seen in ages, especially considering it was directed at
him.
"Um, Thank you," he said instead, trying to remove his hand
from her death-grasp. The expression in her intense blue eyes
became muted as she loosened her hands from around his, though she
didn't let his hand go.
"I was worried when I heard you were sick. If anything had
happened to you, I don't know what I would have done, such a
tragedy would have been terrible."
"I'm rather glad myself, that it doesn't seem to be anything
serious," Duo smiled reassuringly at the blonde, remembering to
give himself an out, were he to disappear for another week.
"Ah? You are not fully recovered yet?"
"I'm afraid not."
The blue eyes began to sparkle with the same fervour as
previously, "Yet you still came to the peace talks today. How
brave, Julian-sama, I have another reason to admire you!"
Duo sighed inwardly, wondering what the heck was with the
girl's gushing that seemed so at odds with the intelligence that
lurked behind the fanaticism. There was also the fact that she
obviously knew him, had met him before. And no matter how
gratifying - and frightening - it was to know he was doing a
reasonable job of impersonating the Peacecraft, there was still the
danger that he would slip and she would become suspicious.
Fortunately, Heero chose that moment to arrive at his side.
He was looking particularly uncomfortable in the suit of clothes
Relena had forced him to wear, though really, the pristine white
with accents of orchid suited him surprisingly well. It served him
right for deciding Duo needed someone to keep an eye on him; he
smirked, watching the irritated swipe of the Japanese boy's hand
through his bangs. He, at least, had managed to sneak by in a red
jacket, with gold embroidered black lapels; a much more comfortable
combination of colours.
"Julian-sama, your brother is asking for you," Heero's voice
was absolutely flat when he spoke and Duo couldn't help but grin
faintly at the further indication of reluctance.
Relena had outdone herself, suggesting he serve as the
Peacecraft's secretary and gofer for the duration of the talks. So
far neither OZ nor Romefeller had identified him as a Gundam pilot,
so he was safe in one way, although his youth had been commented on
by many a diplomat here for the talks.
"Thank you, Heero," he nodded then turned back to the blonde,
bowing over her hand and touching it with his lips. "If you'll
excuse me?"
The blonde inclined her head gracefully, a strange look in
her eyes, and stood aside as Duo walked away at Heero's side.
==========
Duo turned to him with a grateful grin as soon as they were a
reasonable distance away from the blonde.
"Thanks, man. Any idea who that was?"
Heero raised an eyebrow and shrugged, "Dorothy Catalonia,
grand daughter of the current head of Romefeller."
"Strange girl..." Duo murmured.
"Aa."
Heero dropped back into silence as they continued on towards
the front doors of the Romefeller Foundation building where the
talks were being held. His fingers twitched as he considered the
unique chance he had, being here, to destroy a large number of the
people responsible for the war and his presence on Earth as a
Gundam pilot.
But his explosives were quite a distance away, and even his
trusty revolver had been removed from his person as he had walked
into the building, security being understandably tight. Then there
was the presence of Julian, Milliard and Treize to worry about;
regardless of his own opinions on the matter, he had been ordered
to make sure they survived.
"Heero?"
He turned his head towards Duo to let him know he was
listening, but continued to catalogue all the people he had the
opportunity of disabling, if not killing, but was not allowed to.
He sighed, there were times he wished he hadn't met Relena. It
would have made things a lot simpler not to have so loud a
conscience.
"I'd just like to say, that you look really good in that
suit, it really brings out the colour of your eyes."
It took a moment for the comment to register on Heero, but
when it did he gave the other boy his best death glare, which
phased him as little as it did the real Julian.
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. It was really no
wonder it was always a mess, what with Julian, Relena and, now,
Duo.
Then a hand was placed on his shoulder, swinging him around
to face the indigo-eyed boy, and he was startled by the serious
determination in them, "Heero, as soon as this thing's over, I'm
out of here. I need to get back home, as soon as possible, and I
can't if I'm sitting around talking to people like this."
Heero just looked at him, wondering where he was going, since
he seemed to be leading somewhere.
"I don't know if I can do this on my own though. I think
I've found a lead, but I haven't been able to hack all the way into
the system from the computers at the mansion and was hoping you
could."
Heero found himself caught by the sincere request and it's
nature, which reinforced, again, that this was Duo, not Julian. So
many of the little differences had been appearing since he'd
finally let go of the worst of his disbelief. He now found it hard
to believe he ever thought this person _was_ Julian.
"Look, man, I need to get back. The other guys, there's only
four of them, what with Julian useless, if he's there, and me gone.
Relena can't pilot Gundams either, so she's no good, not to mention
the fact that she's got the whole Absolute Pacifism thing going, so
wouldn't anyway. Heero, I _need_ to get back."
Heero nodded, knowing that they did need to get Julian back,
even if he didn't really want to. He was liking the fact that he
didn't have to worry about the crazy guy jumping him and glomping
him and generally being a nuisance. And he actually _enjoyed_
Duo's company, sort of. At least he exhibited common sense at
times.
"Okay."
"Really? Thanks, man!" he exclaimed enthusiastically,
drawing curious looks from around the room. He grinned at them all
apologetically, shrugging, and headed off towards Milliard again.
Heero followed slowly, watching the other boy manage to curb
the bounce in his step, though the happy grin remained, at a lesser
voltage than usual, but it was still there.
He didn't notice the blonde who was leaning casually back
against one of the columns at the side of the room where he and Duo
had been talking, half-obscured by heavy velvet curtains. A frown
sat on her face as she stepped out from behind the drapes and
followed the two of them with her eyes.
==========
DUO'S HOME UNIVERSE:
----------
Julian sat in the window seat of the house where he and the
Gundam pilots were staying, gazing out to where the sun was
falling, in a blaze of orange and red, into the sea. Above the
flames of sunset, the sky had turned a violet to match his eyes and
stars were appearing one by one, twinkling happily down at him.
But he wasn't in the mood for their cheer, and his eyes
returned to the golden sparkles jumping in a path across the sea,
from the sun towards his position. They burned into his eyes,
tears of strain forming as his eyes unfocused, looking through the
path, as though it would show him the way home.
He hated almost everything in this world he was stuck in. He
hated the fact that he couldn't _do_ anything; that the Gundam
pilots had begun to ignore him once they were convinced he was
Julian. He hated that they no longer had the time to sit down and
talk to him for five minutes, when he had all the time in the
world. He hated that he had to rely on Relena's visits to relieve
the boredom and loneliness that was swamping him.
And he hated that every time Heero looked at him it was with
a sadness he couldn't alleviate.
He'd never seen such a strong emotion in either Heero before,
apart from the rage that had brightened his eyes when Julian had
annoyed his own world's version. It hurt more than anything he
could remember, to know that the other him was loved so deeply by
this other Heero, so similar to the one he himself loved.
A bitter smile touched his lips as he wondered why he seemed
to be so unlovable to all the Heero's he met.
"Julian?" a soft voice asked from behind him, and he turned
to Relena, forcing his lips into a sweeter smile.
"Hello, Relena."
"Hi," she smiled gently back. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah. Just missing home."
Relena smiled in understanding, knowing what he was talking
about. After all her home - her family, her father and her past -
had been taken away from her at the beginning of the war, the
difference being she wasn't ever going to get them back.
"That doesn't surprise me. Do you mind if I join you?"
Julian shrugged, "No. It'd be nice to have someone to talk
to." He winced immediately afterwards, not meaning to have exposed
so much of the loneliness that had been exacerbated in this
unfamiliar world.
Surprisingly, instead of looking surprised and shocked by his
declaration, Relena's eyes showed only compassion, sympathy and
understanding, "You're lonely...?" she whispered quietly.
Blinking, Julian shrugged again, "I guess. You?"
Relena inclined her head and stated simply: "How couldn't I
be."
Julian knew exactly what she meant, having come from the same
situation. Being well known, with a whole heap of expectations
weighing on you was not conducive to the development of deep and
emotionally intimate relationships.
No surprise then, that both of them had fixated on Heero, who
was the first person either had met to not care about who they
were. He saw _them_, not their parents or social position.
It was rather ironic that the only person he truly disliked
in his world, the condescending and cruel Relena, was a different
version of the person he was closest to here. The two of them had
so much in common it was almost scary.
The silence that had fallen between them remained unbroken
until Relena glanced upwards suddenly, "Julian?"
"Mm?"
"Could you... would you, um, hold me? Just for a while?"
The sadness and loneliness in Relena's voice that found
echoes within himself drew forwards the threat of tears and he
nodded, swallowing thickly, "Yeah... if you'll...?"
Relena smiled, tears gathering in her eyes as she leaned
towards him and slipped tentative arms around his waist, laying her
head against his chest. Julian's arms came up to encircle her
also, pulling her into a more comfortable position before relaxing
into the embrace, allowing the warmth of physical contact to
comfort him. His cheek lay against soft hair and he smiled the
same smile Relena had been wearing, closing his eyes and just
holding on.
He had no idea how long the two of them remained entwined
there on the window seat drawing strength from one another in order
to face the world. As they sat, an unspoken understanding grew
between them, ensuring them the certainty of a true friend, even if
the other was a world away.
They were startled out of their quiet companionship when the
light switch was turned on, bathing the room in harsh, bright
light.
Drawing abruptly away from one another, they turned to the
door to find a frowning Heero staring at them in anger, jealousy
and puzzlement. Then his face was wiped blank, "We've found
something."
Julian slipped automatically back into the role he'd chosen
to play and, after sending a playful wink in Relena's direction, he
glided across the room and took possession of Heero's arm, gazing
up at him in adoration.
"Heero! Where have you been, Relena-neechan and I have been
waiting for you."
Heero snorted and tugged at the arm in Julian's grip before
growling, "Omae o korosu."
He glanced across to where Relena was rising, smiling at the
two of them. Then an extra sparkle appeared in her eyes and she
was suddenly there, grabbing hold of the arm Julian didn't have,
"We waited and waited, Heero, but you didn't come. Why don't you
ever come and kill me like you said you would?"
Julian laughed, liking Relena even more and appreciating the
sudden angry bewilderment on Heero's face as he looked at the two
of them, "You keep promising us you'll kill us, Heero, but you
never do. Why? What did we do wrong?"
"Baka," Wufei spoke concisely from behind Heero, peering in
the doorway. "We've found something that might help us get you
back to your world. Do you want to know about it or not?"
Julian's eyes went blank for a moment as reality reasserted
itself and he smiled at the Chinese pilot, "Sure. Tell us."
"Let go of me and I will," Heero mumbled.
A frown of psuedo-confusion appeared on Julian's brow, "But
Heero, I'm not stopping you."
"Omae o korosu," the Japanese boy stated again, more
emphatically, still stuck between Julian and Relena, who merely
giggled and altered their grip, dragging him to the nearest couch
and sitting him on it.
Then they gazed at him brightly and expectantly, waiting.
==========
JULIAN'S HOME UNIVERSE:
----------
"Okay then," Duo stated, slipping into the chair in front of
the computer, glancing up at Heero, Relena and Meiran.
"I found this research centre here and they're doing
_something_ related to dimension-ish things, but I can't get any
further than the information they have open to the public in
general. Everything else about the project is tied up behind
pretty heavy security. I've found four layers so far and each
one's harder than the last," a tiny amused smile played about his
mouth as he logged into the computer and quickly hacked into the
research centre's system. He ploughed quickly through the four
security layers then paused. "They've got someone there who's
pretty paranoid about security, I'd say. Anyway, you wanna give
the next layer a go?"
He stood, making room for Heero who sat and began typing.
"How'd you find out about this?" Relena asked quietly from
beside Duo, watching the monitor.
"Hmm? Well, the thing that the guy gave me back in my world
was probably science-y, if you know what I mean. It made sense to
look around for research centres around the area where I was when
everything happened," he shrugged. "There were quite a few around
for some reason, but most of them specialised in bio-chemical-type
stuff. I concentrated on the others, finding out what they were
working on and came up with this as the nearest match."
Relena nodded, lifting her hand to point something on the
monitor out to Heero, finding Duo's finger at the same place at the
same time. They looked at each other and grinned as Heero made an
impatient sound in the back of his throat.
"Why don't you go do something else?"
Duo shook his head, "Nah. Thanks, man, but I gotta know.
Promise I won't bother you any more though, ne?"
"Same," Relena said and the two retired to sit on the other
side of the room, leaning up against the wall. Meiran joined them,
clasping her hands around her knees.
"Duo?" her voice was quiet.
Duo looked across at her with an eyebrow raised, "Yeah?"
She blushed, "Can you... can you tell me about Wufei? I
never really got the chance to know him, and I was wondering..."
Duo grinned at her, "Wufei... Heh, what can I say? He's this
great justice freak who constantly moans about women, the ultimate
in chauvinism and spends most of his time with 'Nataku'."
Meiran looked rather disappointed as he began, nodding at the
similarities between her memories and what Duo was saying, though
she found she was still surprised by the name by which Wufei had
chosen to call his Gundam. It made her think that maybe she had
meant something to her husband after all.
"But he's cool. He's a really good pilot, and despite what
he says when he mumbles about not knowing what justice is, he does
a good job of keeping it. It must've been hard for him to change
from being a scholar to being a warrior, but he managed. He still
thinks too much to be a really good soldier."
The Chinese girl liked that better than the first comments
Duo had made, smiling a little in pride and a certain amount of
sadness.
"Has he...?" Meiran blushed again and didn't continue.
Duo looked at her strangely for a moment then light dawned
and he shook his head, "Nah, he hasn't got a girlfriend..." Duo
trailed off as something dawned on him, "Though there _is_ Sally."
He grinned, "You'd like her. She can keep him in line, y'know, and
she won't put up with him being stupid or anything."
Meiran nodded, "Good. I'm glad. He was an idiot, really,
but..."
"But he's worth a little effort and needs a girlfriend to
show him how things are?"
A laugh made it's way out of Meiran, "Yeah."
Then a sly grin emerged on Duo's face, "What about you and
Trowa?"
Relena was the one that laughed this time, "See, Meiran, I
_told_ you it was obvious."
Meiran blushed again.
"I still think it's strange that it's not Quatre and Trowa
though. I mean, those guys seemed perfect for each other."
The two girls looked a little shocked at that.
"What!?"
"Trowa and _Quatre_!? You're kidding, right?"
Duo blinked, "I... didn't tell you?"
Meiran shook her head, wide-eyed and Relena bent a mild glare
his way, torn between asking for all the details and concern for
how her friend would take _that_ piece of information.
"Oh. Um, well, yeah, they're a couple. I think it was love
at first sight, ne? On Quatre's part anyway, it's kind of hard to
tell what's going on with Trowa. But Quatre finally got through to
him and," Duo shrugged, "They're happy."
Then Relena's glare and the glances she was sending towards
Meiran caught up with him and a slightly worried look appeared in
his eyes as he watched the Chinese girl for her reaction, ready to
make amends if necessary.
Meiran stared blankly at nothing for a few long, tense
moments, then laughed, startling her two friends. She smiled at
them, "You know, they _would_ make a cute couple, if I wasn't
around."
"I'm done," a flat, nasal voice broke in on them and they all
looked up at Heero who had spun around to face them from in front
of the computer. He sent a curious look in Duo's direction,
flicked his gaze to Meiran then settled back on Duo, who rose and
approached.
"The project is researching the possibility of using
dimensional energies and Dr. Keller has apparently made a break
through with the invention of the Keller. It's supposed to create
minor rifts between dimensions and gather energy from it," Heero
swung aside and let Duo look at the monitor where a picture was
displayed.
It was a small rounded object, shining in metallic glory and
superimposed over a set of blueprints.
Duo looked at it for a second, "Well, cover it with a towel
and it'd look exactly like the thing that probably brought me
here." He grinned widely at the other three, "I guess this means
we go and visit Dr. Keller."
==Owari, Chapter Six==
Thanks to Carm for suggesting Dorothy's appearance, we're sure to
be seeing more of her ^_^
http://www.geocities.com/sefilin/
sefilin@yahoo.com