Disclaimer: Gundam Wing is owned by some big-shot company. And as you can guess, I'm not that big shot company.
A. N. I tried angst, action/adventure, sap, lemon and humor. This is my first AU/mystery fic so please review. The info about the Mobius Strip is from Marcia Galleher's homepage.
For comments, suggestions, flames or reviews, you can email me at raizenheero@aol.com.
Trowa managed to snatch the ball away from the other team and began dribbling towards the opposite court. Two defensemen blocked him so he passed the ball to Duo who then passed it to Wufei. Wufei saw at the corner of his eye that Heero was free so he tried to dribble towards him, Quatre helping him by giving him a screen. Heero caught the ball and started dribbling towards the basket. He looked up the scoreboard. 80 all with ten seconds remaining. Heero faked a left. 5, 4, 3… He jumped and released the ball. The buzzer sounded. The game was over but the ball was still wobbling around the rim. After a few heartbeats, it went in. Cheers and shouts echoed inside the gymnasium. Trowa and Duo hurled Heero on their shoulders while their teammates rushed up to them. Relena and the rest of the cheerleaders joined them in the middle of the court, jumping up and down, balloons and confetti falling on them.
"And the South City Warriors wins the championship! It's a three peat, folks! Final Score 82-80. Congratulations!" the announcer said.
The trophy was awarded to the Warriors' coach, Treize Khushrenada. The whole basketball team together with the cheerleaders and Coach Treize took a pose as their picture was taken. Everybody was celebrating.
A lone figure stood at the far end of the gymnasium, carefully eyeing the spectacle. He then turned and walked away, smiling his satisfaction.
Relena, Hilde, Dorothy, Catherine and Sally waved to the other cheerleaders as they went out of the shower room. "See you guys later," Relena called out.
They went straight to the parking lot where they knew their respective boyfriends were waiting for them. They saw Heero and Trowa silently leaning on Heero's car, Duo and Quatre engaged in a conversation and Wufei impatiently tapping his foot, his arms crossed. The five guys turned to look at them when they got near.
"What took you so long onnas? We've been waiting here for 30 minutes," Wufei said angrily.
Instead of cowering and answering his question, the five girls giggled. Sally went to him and clasped her hands around his neck. He glared at her but wrapped his arms around her waist. "You onnas always take a long time to shower and change. You're so inconsiderate. Don't you know that we're starving? It was a tiring game," he ranted.
"Wufei, shut up," Sally cooed as she pressed her lips on his.
"So that's the only way to make him shut-up. Sally should have told us sooner so we didn't have to suffer this much," Duo commented as he slipped his arms around Hilde.
"Why? You want to kiss him to shut him up too?" Hilde teased.
Catherine chuckled. "Oooh, I want to see that," she said, holding hands with Trowa.
"Me too," Trowa added.
Dorothy went to Quatre. "Hi," she greeted.
"Hi, yourself," Quatre answered as he pulled her close and kissed the top of her head.
Heero locked gazes with Relena as she approached him. She stopped a few inches in front of him and ran a hand through his unruly mane. Heero's face remained blank but his eyes smiled at her. He had always liked it whenever she runs a hand on his hair.
"Nice game," Relena told him.
"Nice half-time show," Heero countered.
"Yeah. You were all awesome! You made the guys from the other team drool and wish that they belong to our team." Duo said as he sneaked a kiss at Hilde. Hilde giggled.
"We better go, guys. They're all waiting for us in Coach Treize's house for the victory bash," Quatre suggested.
Murmurs of ascent were heard as the five couples went to their respective cars. After a chorus of doors banging close, the five cars sped away.
*********************************
Heero tossed and turned on his bed. "Wing Zero…" he muttered in his sleep. "Where are my enemies?" he muttered once more. Suddenly, his eyes opened and he jerked into a sitting position, panting. "That dream again," he said. Why am I having those dreams? He turned his head and looked at the clock. 4:30 am. Hn. Five more hours before I have to go hang out in Duo's place. He laid back again, staring at the ceiling. He knew that if he closed his eyes, those dreams will be back to haunt him. So he continued lying there, wide-awake, waiting for the sun to come up and release him from the echoes of the night.
*********************************
In Relena's house…
"Earth to Relena, Come in, Relena," Hilde said as she waved her hands in front of Relena's face.
Relena blinked then smiled at her friend. "Oh, Hilde. I'm sorry. What were you saying again?"
Hilde stared at her. Catherine, Sally and Dorothy gathered around them. "What? Do I have a dirt on my face or something?" Relena asked as they kept on staring at her.
"What's the matter, Relena?" Sally inquired.
"What's the matter? Nothing's the matter," she replied.
"You've been spacing off frequently for the past week," Catherine told her.
"Do you have any problem? You know that we're here to help," Dorothy said.
Relena turned her head to look out of her window. "I don't have any problems really. I'm just… thinking."
"About what?" Hilde asked.
She looked at them. Maybe they can help me sort it out, she thought. "About the weird dreams that I'm having…"
At the same time…
Wufei, Trowa and Duo looked at each other as Heero made his 10th scratch. The four of them were playing billiards at Duo's house. Duo cleared his throat and asked, "Um, Heero buddy, do you have a problem?"
Heero glared at him as he took a seat beside Quatre. "Why do you ask?" he said evenly.
"Well, you made your 10th scratch." Duo pointed out.
"So?"
"You're usually good in billiards. Heck, you're the best among us in billiards," Wufei answered.
Heero shrugged. "It's just not my day."
Trowa looked at him after taking his shot. "You're usually the best in everything, Heero. And there hadn't been a day that you weren't at your best. This is unusual."
Heero didn't answer. Quatre put down the book he was reading and studied Heero for a moment. "To be blunt, you look like hell, Heero. Didn't you sleep well last night?"
Heero looked at his friends, silently debating with himself if telling them was a good idea. He sighed then answered, "I haven't slept well for the past week. Last night was the worst. I have these reoccurring dreams."
Duo grinned mischievously. "Is Relena in it?"
Heero glared at him. "Yes. But it's not what you think, Duo. You are in it too. And so are the others."
"What others? Us?" Wufei asked.
"Hn. The five of us, our girlfriends, Coach Treize, Relena's brother Zechs, his girlfriend Noin and Principal Une."
"What is it about?" Trowa queried.
"The five of us were called 'Gundam pilots', the Gundams being this deadly, huge robot suits. I pilot the Gundam called Wing Zero, Duo's was the Deathscythe, Trowa's was the Heavyarms, Quatre's was the Sandrock and Wufei's was the Altron. We were sent by the space colonies to wage guerilla war against this group called OZ that was headed by Coach Treize. Principal Une was his adjutant, while Zechs and Noin were OZ's best soldiers…"
"…I was the daughter of the Vice Foreign Minister for the space colonies, Hilde was once an OZ soldier but she changed sides when she met Duo, Sally was an Alliance soldier and doctor, Dorothy was the granddaughter of the head of the Romefeller foundation that was backing OZ and Catherine was a circus performer. She treated Trowa as a younger brother though."
"Ooh, incest," Dorothy joked. Catherine poked her in the ribs.
"We were caught in a war. I tried my best to stop it, advocating the idea of total pacifism. The tension between the Earth and the Colonies was culminating and the five Gundams choosing neither side, resolved to stop that meaningless war once and for all. At the end, Heero had to face Milliardo in a battle to save the Earth. Milliardo had this idea that in order to make humans stop wanting wars, they must be shown the bloodiest of wars to scare them. And he wanted to destroy the Earth by crashing a giant space ship to it. But Heero stopped him and saved the world…"
Heero stopped talking and looked at his hands. "The scary thing about those dreams was that they felt very real. I could still feel the Zero system in my head. I could feel the adrenaline rushing through me when fighting another soldier and when piloting the Wing Zero, destroying everything in my path. I could smell the blood, I could see the destruction. It's like I'm reliving my past life, with those dreams coming to me in sequence."
"But it couldn't be your past life. You talked about space colonies right? So it's in the future," Quatre said.
"Do you mean I'm dreaming my future life?" Relena asked.
"We're not sure. We're just telling you that it's probably not your past life since you dream of outer space," Dorothy answered.
"But it felt so real," Relena breathed.
"Maybe they're just that, dreams and not some kind of premonition or an insight in your past life," Catherine suggested.
"Yeah. Just forget about it, Relena. It wouldn't do you any good if you keep on thinking about it," Hilde added.
Relena didn't answer. They don't understand. Even if I try, I can't let it go. It feels like a part of me. Relena's thoughts were interrupted when she heard Dorothy say, "Hey, cool!"
She looked at her friend and saw Dorothy standing by her study table, holding a piece of twirled paper, the Mobius Strip.
"I think it will be for the best if you stop thinking of those dreams, Heero," Duo said after a moment of silence.
"Duo's right. Maybe if you stop thinking of those dreams, you wouldn't dream about them again," Trowa amended.
"Besides, those dreams might not mean anything. You'll just waste your time and energy wondering about them," Wufei said.
"If you can't stop thinking about them, divert yourself. Set your sights in other things. Like the 'friendly' game with our rival school next week. We need you in good shape for that game," Quatre added.
Heero remained staring at the cue ball. There's just something about it that I can't explain to them. I've always relied on my instincts and my instincts are telling me not to ignore those dreams. He then saw Quatre pick up his book. "What are you reading, Quatre?"
"Oh this? It's about the Mobius Strip."
Relena approached her. "That's Milliardo's. He's obsessed with the Mobius Strip."
"Why won't you call your brother by his nickname? Zechs is way cooler than Milliardo," Hilde commented, still perched by the edge of Relena's bed.
Relena just shrugged. Catherine went to them and fingered the Mobius Strip. "Why is Zechs fascinated with it?"
"He said that it's an expression of non-duality. It reveals the Unity of all polarities, creating a state of Oneness, joining the whole and the part, the masculine and the feminine, expansion and contraction, spirit and matter, etc. Everything is one and nothing can be separated from anything else. All is completely intertwined, infinitely."
"Mobius Strip? That's the paper with only one surface right?" Duo asked.
"Yup. When you draw a pencil line all around, from the inside to the outside and back where you started, you'll find that you never lifted the pencil off the paper and yet the one surface has a complete line through it," Quatre replied.
"If I remember it correctly, when you cut the strip along that pencil line, instead of 2 separate strips you'll have one long Mobius Strip. Cut it again along the center and you'll get two totally intertwined strips that don't separate," Wufei informed them.
"And if you do this forever, you'll get an infinite number of intertwined strips that never separate," Heero added.
"Why are you reading about that, Quatre?" Trowa inquired.
"Well, I'm just curious about it, that's all. It has many meanings. But it's mostly associated with the concept of infinity. Many believed that the time dimension is just like the Mobius Strip, with the past and the future connected at their ends. Like one big, continuous loop."
The five girls turned their heads toward the door when a knock was heard. Zechs peered in and said, "Are you ready? Noin and I are heading out to the fair now."
The five friends looked at each other. With the Mobius Strip and Relena's dreams, they forgot that they were going to hitch a ride with Zechs to the fair so they could meet the guys there. "Give us five minutes," Relena answered as they scrambled to the dresser.
Zechs shook his head. Girls. "Ok but make it quick," he said. He then closed the door.
Duo looked at his watch. "Hey, I hate to stop this stimulating conversation about the Mobius Strip but we have to go now. I want to wander around the fair first before meeting the girls," Duo told them.
The other four guys nodded and they all headed outside.
*********************************
Heero decided to walk around the fair by himself. He still had to sort things out. I won't be at peace until I find out what those dreams mean. He then saw a hooded figure in front of a booth whose sign read "Dream Interpreter". As he approached, the person removed his hood and smiled at him. "Your dreams troubling you, son?" the old man asked.
"Yes."
"I can help you. Tell me about your dreams."
After taking a seat, Heero started telling him everything about his dreams. The old man listened patiently, nodding several times. "I want to know what my dreams mean. Am I dreaming of my past life? Or is it a vision of my future?"
The old man solemnly regarded him. "This is what I want to ask you. Is it that important for you to know if it's your past life or your future? The past is gone and the future is still coming. Is not the present more important? In your dreams, you were the Perfect Soldier. You were trained since childhood to kill and in your lifetime you killed many. You never had a normal childhood, you never had a normal life. You never felt loved. Do you want that life? Can't you just be thankful that you're living this life now instead of the one in your dream? Maybe that is the message of your dream --- be thankful for what you have."
Heero remained silent, pondering the old man's words. The old man smiled at him again, "Aren't you glad that in this lifetime, you didn't threaten to kill Relena? And that you can freely express what you feel for her? That both of you don't have that enormous responsibility of keeping peace?"
Heero looked at him. "Go to her, I know that she's waiting for you. Make every second count. That's what your dreams meant to tell you. Be thankful you got this chance. You might not be lucky the next time." Heero suddenly stood up and started walking away to find Relena. He then stopped when he remembered he hadn't even paid nor thanked the old man. When he looked back, he was surprised to find the place where the booth just stood moments ago to be vacant. He looked around, thinking that he might had just gotten the location wrong. But he didn't find any trace of the booth or the old man. He shrugged and continued on his way.
Meanwhile…
Relena managed to slip away from her friends and her brother. She wanted to be left alone with her own thoughts. She absentmindedly roamed around the fair. She saw a bench and sat down. Why do I have those dreams? What are they trying to tell me? She was so engrossed with her thoughts that she didn't hear a person approach her.
"Want to buy some apples? They're 50 cents a piece," the old lady carrying a basket said to her.
Relena just shook her head and continued to stare off in space.
"Are you troubled, child?" the old lady asked. Startled, Relena turned her head and eyed the old lady carefully. The old lady smiled and sat beside her.
"Don't be afraid. I can see that you're bothered by something. Tell me what it is, maybe I can help."
Relena studied her for a moment. To be honest, she'll go insane with all of this thinking. She really needed someone to help her sort this out. And the old lady looked kind and sincere enough. "I know it sounds weird but, you see, I, uh, I have these dreams. Those dreams are what's troubling me." She then told her about her dreams.
After she was finished telling her tale, the old lady asked, "So, why are you troubled by them?"
"Because I want to know why I'm having them. Are those dreams warning me of my future? Or are they telling me of my past? What's their significance?"
"Maybe the reason you can't find the answer is because you're asking the wrong question. Does it really matter if it's warning you of your future or telling you of your past? If it's really a warning, do you think that you can prevent it from happening? Or if it's really your past, what else can you do about it? What matters is the present. What matters is that you're living your life now, happy and carefree, unlike the one you saw in your dream. It was exciting, true, and you became a famous political figure, even becoming Queen of the World for a while. But you were living in a war-torned world. Your real parents were killed, you were separated from your brother, your foster father was assassinated. When you met your brother after a few years, he was trying to destroy the whole Earth. Do you want to have that life? Do you want to exchange this world for that?"
"No."
"So just be thankful that it's only a dream. I think that's the significance of it. It's trying to teach you the value of your present life. In this lifetime, you're just an ordinary 16-yr old girl not a princess, a Queen or a Vice Foreign Minister. You have your family, your friends. And you have Heero. Isn't that enough? Aren't you happy that you're in this life where Heero can openly express his feelings for you? That he doesn't need to fight or to kill? That you're actually living in a peaceful world, the world you and the rest of the Gundam pilots were striving to achieve?"
Relena didn't answer. The old lady's words make sense to her. Why am I troubling myself with a dream anyways?
The old lady smiled at her and stood up. "Go, child. Find him. He's waiting for you. Don't dwell on things that don't make sense. Try to live your life to the fullest and savor every breath. That's the message of your dream. Be thankful that you got this chance. You might not be lucky the next time."
Relena stood up and beamed at her. "Thank you," she said then turned to walk away. She suddenly whirled around. "Hey, I didn't get your---" she trailed off as she saw that the old lady was gone. "---name," she finished. She looked around but she didn't see any trace of her. For an old lady she really does walk fast.
She started to walk away when she heard a familiar voice calling her name.
"Relena!"
She turned and saw Heero running towards her. He enveloped her in a hug, lifted her and whirled her around. He then set her down. He cupped her face and stared at her eyes.
"I'm glad that we're here, living this life. Together," he said, somewhat solemnly.
"I know. I'm thankful too," she answered. She closed her eyes as Heero leaned down and captured her lips with his own. The past, with its dangers and delights, was behind them. The future, still a mystery, lays ahead. In this brief moment, suspended between the two, both of them were content just to be in each other's arms.
Two figures watched the couple from afar. "Everything is back to normal now," the woman said.
"Yes. The dreams were inevitable. We can never stop them from occurring. With minds and wills as strong as theirs, they'll always remember. All we can do to interfere is to tell them to ignore the dreams and savor their present lives," the man replied.
The woman smiled. "People always live in the present. Yesterday was once a present and tomorrow will be another present," she stated.
"It's a continuous loop, endless, infinite. It will never stop. Like the Mobius Strip. But I'm glad that they had this chance. They deserve it," he said.
"I agree. With the realization of the importance of the present, the dreams will stop. Both of them will sleep peacefully tonight," she said, smiling. Satisfied, the two figures walked away.
That night, Duo dreamt of Deathscythe Hell.
And the loop starts all over again.