Relena looked over another bill. The senators had submitted it to her several times, and every time she had some reason to void it. This time, though, it seemed that everything was in order. She picked up a black fountain pen and signed her name. Relena Yuy.
She heard the window of her third story office open and felt the gentle breeze as it wafted in. Turning, she saw her husband standing at the window, watching the people move around outside. She smiled. It had been three years since the war with Mariemaia and everything had gone uphill. The colonies and the earth were on steady ground, and there hadn't been one civil war.
He turned to look at her and smiled. Still a little bitter, but better than anything she had seen before. After everything was done, he seemed to be a little more open about what he was feeling... then again it had taken him almost two years to propose...
"You look in pain."
Her smile grew. "It's not that bad. I just have a little crick in my neck."
Without another word he walked over behind her and began to massage out what he could. Relena let herself relax into the chair, the bill forgotten on her desk.
"Miss Relena?" a knock came on the door. Heero stiffened and took a few steps to the side so he was standing next to her chair, glaring daggers at the dark Oak door.
"Yes Motoki, please come in."
"Do you have the papers ready for approval? The Minister would like them
sent out today if possible." There was an evil glint in his eye. One that didn't
go unnoticed. Heero unconsciously reached his hand into the pocket of his
stonewash jeans, letting his hand graze the metal of his gun.
"Yes. They're all right here on my desk." He stepped forward next to Heero
and picked them up, putting a paperclip around the documents.
"I'll have them sent out immediately-"
A shot rang out, flying through the air and hit Heero's gun, setting it off. The bullet ricochet off of the smooth metal and right into Motoki's leg, who in turn, dropped the gun he had been holding. The bullet from Heero's gun lodged itself deep in his stomach. All this happened within a few seconds.
Usagi jumped up from her hiding spot among the bushes in front of the building. Omigod. Omigod. She thought. I heard more gun shots that can't be good. I have to get back to the base. She ran as fast as she could, putting the gun back into the holster. I can't believe I did that! I can't stand guns!
Relena stared around her in confusion, taking only a second to think, she grabbed the phone off the hook and called down for security. Looking to the ground, she saw Motoki reaching for the gun, so she quickly snatched it out of his reach and pointed it at him with a shaky hand. With the other, she called an ambulance.
"Usagi!" The blonde haired woman turned abruptly to face her boss. He was a grouchy old man that always seemed to have a stick up his butt. "Is the job done?" He demanded.
Usagi gave a nervous giggle. "Yeah. Of course it is."
"No screw ups this time?" He asked, leaning closer to her.
She never could lie. "Well... there was kinda... more than one shot." At the sour look on his face she decided to elaborate. "But it's okay, right? Because I still got rid of the blonde guy you wanted me to and the Relena girl isn't dead and-" She crumpled to the floor and two waterfalls burst from her eyes.
He looked down each hallway at the people looking at him and sighed. "It's alright Usagi, just go back to your chambers. I'll call you when you're needed."
She sniffled and made her way down the hallway.
He turned and did the same, walking several feet and stepping into his office. "That girl is nothing but trouble. She's going to have us found out eventually."
"That's why I want her eliminated. I don't care how you do it." Usagi's boss looked into the shadows as a woman emerged.
"Oh. Beryl you scared me. But how could I do that? She's like a daughter to me."
"FIND A WAY!" she shouted before turning and walking back out of the office.
He took a deep breath and turned on the small, black and white television set.
Hilde and Duo ran into the hospital after getting the message. They had been out shopping for a wedding dress when the page came through. Heero had been admitted to the Sanq Hospital. Relena was the first to spot them and walked forward to meet them.
"What happened?" Hilde asked, trying to catch her breath. It seemed as if they had been running the whole way here.
"We were in my office and all of a sudden a gun went off from outside. It flew in the window and hit Heero." she looked at the door to the emergency room where he was, probably having the bullet taken out at that exact moment.
Duo noticed how sad she looked. "He probably made the doctors promise not to use any pain killers, either... or he's stealing the knife to do it himself..." He said, jokingly.
Relena smiled. That's my Heero. He's been through a lot tougher things than this. He'll be fine.
"Maxwell," a warning voice came from the other side of the room. Duo's eyes lit up immediately.
"Wu-man?" he questioned. Wufei took a deep breath.
"Maxwell, I have told you countless times not to call me that."
"I haven't seen you in years! What have you been doing? Where have you been living?" he noticed Sally standing next to him. "Who have you been dating?" Sally smirked while Wufei seethed silently.
"One. I have been instructing Martial Arts classes. Two. I have been living in a rather large house next to the Dojo I teach my classes in. Three." he looked to Sally. "I am not dating the weak woman."
A short... very short silence followed. Duo opened his mouth to speak again. "Wanna know what I've been doing? Eh? Do ya? Do ya, Wu-man?"
"You will not address me as," he shuddered at the name, "Wu-man. And-"
"Of course we'd like to know, Duo." Sally said, effectively cutting Wufei off. He grunted in her direction and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Well. Hilde and I went and got married."
"When?" Relena asked, leaning forward. "I always thought," she stopped to sniffle for effect, "that I would be invited to your wedding."
Duo and Hilde smiled at each other. "Well, it was kind of a... spur of the moment thing..."
"You mean you woke up married?" Wufei grunted.
Sally looked at him appalled. "Wufei, that was mean. You shouldn't-"
"Actually..." he started, sweat dropping, "That... was... kinda how we got married. We're planning a real one though, and you're all invited."
Relena turned at the sound of footsteps coming up behind her. A man carrying a clip board stopped in front of her. "Mrs. Yuy?" he asked.
"Yes?" She replied, anxiously.
"He's going to be fine. You can see him now." She smiled and walked towards the room. As she entered, she saw Heero pulling off all the wires and standing up. The doctor rushed over to stop him.
"Sir. You have to sit down and I'll get these re-connected and-"
"Omae o korosu," he stated, going back to pulling the wires off.
"Now see here," the doctor started, aggravated. Heero turned to him, giving a death glare and the doctor backed off. He looked to Relena. "Do you think you could possibly get him to stop?"
Usagi stepped into her chambers, letting the smell of chocolate and the sight of large pink bunnies overwhelm her. Even in this line of work she held onto her innocence... and then handcuffed it to herself and threw away the key.
She stepped up to the vanity mirror in the front of her room. Her reflection stared back at her. Two long streamers of hair drifting down from two buns that sat on either side of her head. The golden hair flowed down over her shoulders and down to right above her knees. She smiled, her blue eyes sparkling.
She picked up the potpourri bottle in front of the mirror and opened it up. More of the chocolate smell ran through the room. She sighed. Chocolate had always been her favorite. Even if it wasn't... really allowed in the base. She set it down and picked up the diary next to it, reading through the entries from the first to last. This was the only reading she could ever do.
I can't believe that three years ago this job was so available to me. They didn't even put an ad in the paper... and yet I made it here. She smiled. It was just really great luck.
Three years ago, Usagi had just been a normal girl out on a trip with her parents when she stumbled off the beaten path and ended up tricking a wire around the base. Of course, she was immediately brought in. They were about to have her "destroyed" when Beryl had picked up on something about her. Her magical aura was through the roof. She had about as much as a fallen deity on earth.
It hadn't taken them long to convince her to stay with them... especially after her parents and brother had that... fatal accident. They had given her the easiest missions they could come up with... just to give her something to do... and she still managed to botch them all up. The girl was just not right for the White Fang. Even then, they couldn't let her go.. and destroying her was a waste... so they kept her going. Although that wasn't the story Usagi heard.
She just saw on the television that her parents and brother had been killed in a freak accident and decided to stay with them when she was invited.
She sighed. I just wish I could do something right.
Relena giggled at the look on the doctor's face. "Heero, you can't go yet." She smiled. He merely "hn.."ed her. "Come on. Lay back down. Let the doctors work their magic. You're still bleeding." He just looked at her. "Please?"
He sat back down on the bed and the doctor exited the room, talking to himself.
"It won't be that bad. I'll stay here with you. Also, there are some friends here to-"
The door flew open. "Hee-chan!" Duo shouted, running in.
Wufei came in next. "Maxwell, be silent. We shouldn't be here in the first place and your loud speech will have us caught."
"Gimme a break Wu-man."
"Do not call me Wu-man!" He shouted. An uncomfortable silence followed.
"Now who's yelling?" Duo grumbled to himself.
Sally and Hilde also found their way in, moving around so that there was more room. Dorothy and Quatre stepped in, Trowa and Catherine not far behind.
"I didn't know you came," she smiled to them.
Quatre blushed. "Sorry I'm late. There was a crisis and I had to post-phone quite a few things." Quatre had finally taken over the Winner company and had been managing it since the gundams were gone. Dorothy smiled. "I had to wait for Quatre to get back."
"You two are... living together?" Relena asked, blinking.
"Just until I save up to get my own home."
Relena nodded. "Trowa. Catherine. So good to see you."
Trowa nodded his greeting. Catherine sighed. "Barton. It is dishonorable to wear such clothing in a hospital." At this point Relena finally noticed that Trowa was in his clown costume and Catherine was also in hers.
All questionable looks were focused on them.
"We left in the middle of a performance."
"Oh" chorused around the room.
"So, Hee-chan. How ya feeling?" Duo asked, closing in.
"Fine." he grunted.
Duo nodded. "Okay...."
"Why don't you stay with us until he gets better. I had you all come all this way." Relena asked.
"'Sokay!" Duo near-shouted. "We can stay at a hotel."
"Really, it's no trouble."
"Yuy, he said he will stay at a hotel. Then I wont have to hear his griping constantly-" Wufei started.
"Wu-man!" Duo whined.
"Don't call me Wu-man!"
The doctor then came back into the room, and finding all the people, shooed them
all out. Wufei was the only complaint with a few "weak doctors".
The paparazzi had been all over the capital building where the shooting had taken place. Usagi's boss watched the program as they crowded around the doors.
How would he be able to get rid of her... without really getting rid of her. It would have to be something potentially dangerous that Beryl would go for... while at the same time safe enough that she wouldn't be killed. He sighed. What a wonderful life he had.
Night came quickly. Relena came home to wash up and pack some clothes for Heero before going back up the next morning. She quickly threw some of his favorite clothing into a bag and set it down next to her bed. She crawled in and fell asleep almost instantly.
Heero slept soundly in his room. Two very big, muscle-bound men entered with a woman behind them. Everything but her sparkling blue eyes remained hidden. She pointed a gloved hand to Heero and the two men leapt forward, seizing his hands as she applied the gas mask to his face. Within a minute's time, he was asleep.
The goons kept all the doctors away as they passed through, while the girl worked diligently, using all the sterilized tools she had found around the hospital to put a small computer chip into the back of his neck, where it would intercept all parts of the thought process. She quickly put everything back the way it had been and they were out in what seemed like a flash.
Heero awoke later that night, his thoughts completely clouded over. He stood on his bed, snapping all of the wires around him and made a flying leap out the second story window, doing a tuck/roll onto the ground. As he stood, his eyes showed confusion... and a sudden light.
He ran as fast as he could back to the house and walked in slowly and silently. He grinned a maniacal grin. He felt like he had been put back in the zero system... but this time... this time the urge to kill was so strong... he picked up a knife from the kitchen. A large one with a sterling blade. He walked slowly out into the living room and looked around. No one was there. He walked into the bedroom. Relena slept, her chest rising and falling with each life-giving breath. He sat and just watched her sleep for several minutes, finding it completely enthralling.
He took several steps closer and picked her up. She snuggled into the embrace. He walked into the bathroom and lay her down gently in the tub. He went back to the bed where he had put down the knife and picked it up. The blade shown in the light from the nearby lamp.
He walked back into the bathroom. Watching as she smiled in her sleep and whispered his name. He brought the knife up and brought it down right through the heart. Her eyes shot open for a second and stared into his completely cold and dull ones. Pain turned to fear and her eyes closed. The blood oozed out from the cut, sliding down and into the drain.
Usagi woke with a start. Naru had obviously been shaking her for several minutes, as she had a very sour expression on her face.
"Usagi. He wants to see you. Something about a new mission. He said it was urgent." Usagi knew exactly who she was referring to. The boss would never tell her his true name, just in case of an emergency. She jumped out of the bed and threw open the armoire, throwing on some more appropriate clothing and flying out the door.
Naru stared wide-eyed. If only Usagi could use that for missions. She mused.
Usagi knocked on the door. There was a somewhat harsh grunt that always meant come in. "I have a new mission for you. Beryl demanded that you be put on the job."
"What do I have to do?" she asked.
"Find this guy. His name is Heero Yuy. He escaped from the hospital, so we know he's been injured. It should give us an advantage. After that, he went back to his home and killed his wife." Usagi's face took on a shocked look. "Then he was just... gone. Here's his information."
He handed her a manila folder labeled 'Yuy, Heero'. Inside she could see birth records, I.Q. tests, schooling, and an advanced psychological profile.
"So... I'm just supposed to find him and bring him in?" She asked slowly.
He nodded. "You must bring him back here at any cost."
"'Kay!" She said cheerfully, before skipping out of the room.
He sat there for several minutes, just watching the door. There was a beep on his intercom. A red one in the first slot. Beryl. He thought. He pressed it and immediately, an angry voice began.
"Did you give her the mission?"
"Of course." He said, "but why her? She'll never be able to stop him."
Beryl's lips twisted into a grin. "Exactly."
"...I... Don't understand..." He heard her sigh on the other end.
"Not even our most specialized forces could get through to him. This is your break. I'm getting rid of her for you. She wont be coming back from this one. Yuy is very intelligent. He used to be a Gundam Pilot."
"He was one of them?"
"Yes. Just make sure she starts today. And that she gets the pictures he sent to us."
"...Alright."
The light stopped blinking, showing him that Beryl had cut the connection. He pressed a button and Naru's voice answered on the other end.
"Yes?"
"Osaka, I need you to deliver the package on my secretary's desk to Usagi."
"'Kay!" He could almost see her doing a 'V-is-for-victory symbol' through it. She disconnected.
Usagi stared at the pictures in her hand. "What am I looking for? It's the exact same thing!" She huffed and threw them down on the bed, walking over to pick up her hairbrush. She quickly took down the buns and began to brush her hair, pacing around the quiet room.
She went to sit down and looked back at the picture. Okay. What would Beryl tell me to do if she were here? Ah.
Usagi picked up a red pen and divided each picture into 5 sections. She looked at each one at a time, scrutinizing for almost an hour until Naru entered. She immediately brightened up.
"Hey Naru, wanna help?"
"Sure Usagi, what do you need?" She walked over to sit down next to her.
"The guy I'm supposed to track down sent these. I guess there's supposed to be a clue in one of them."
"Hmmm..." Naru said, looking closer at the two pictures. Several seconds later she moved away and pointed at something. "Ah ha!"
"What?" Usagi asked, her eyes wide.
"Isn't that the rabbit I gave you for your birthday last year?" Usagi did a full face-fault.
"Actually it does kinda looks like it, doesn't it?"
They giggled for a few minutes, before Usagi picked up the other one.
"Wait... the rabbit isn't in this one..."
"Seriously?" Naru asked, her eyes growing wide. "Wow. I am SO psychic! I KNEW it wasn't there all along."
Usagi smiled. "Sure you did Naru." She flipped both over. The one with the rabbit had an 'A' labeled on the back and the other had a 'B'.
Usagi's face got a questionable look. "And here... we have exhibit A..."
Naru giggled. "Naw Usa, it's prolly something so simple like... before and after,"
Usagi immediately sobered, pointing a finger at her friend. "That's good Naru!"
"I wasn't really serious..." she smiled, "but it is good isn't it?"
"Yeah, it is." Usagi replied giggling. "I should go check it out. Thanks for all the help!"
"No prob!" Usagi moved out of the room and down the hall. Won't he be so proud of me? she thought to herself smirking.