Disclaimer: There's one of these at the top of every piece of GW fanfiction, and fans know they aren't stealing ideas from Sunrise, Sotsu, etc. So it's kinda pointless, but I bow to the power of lawsuits and copyright infringements (If they took down Napster, they can certainly take me.) Anyway, I don't own Heero, Relena, Zechs, Duo, or any of those other crazy characters. I wish I owned Wing Zero though, so I could nuke any jerks or philistines with my giant buster rifle (cue maniacal laughter). Anyway, that's unquestionably the longest disclaimer I ever wrote so I'm going to say it counts for all my other fics too. Yup, it's the mother of all disclaimers. And now that it's over, I can get on with the story (and my life).
Note: This fic is a bridge between 'The Awakening,' the tale of Heero's past, and a fic about Quatre's past, entitled 'Disconnect.' The interlude itself also takes place between the Gundam Wing series and Endless Waltz.
Interlude
By Zero's Wings
AC 196 - A new colony has come to the forefront of the Gundam pilots attention. Colony Lx-18999 had began covert internal operations that could have only one agenda: to illegally produce mobile suit weapons to plot an uprising against the other colonies or perhaps even Earth itself. Since Heero had come across this information, he and four of the other Gundam pilots had rented a small apartment in the center of the colony, only a few blocks away from the capital building. Only Wufei did not come, and no one, not even Sally, who always kept tabs on him, knew where he had gone. The rest of them, Duo, Trowa, and Quatre, had put their respective lives on hold to prepare for the conflict that Heero was sure would come from this colony. They were watching and waiting, like a bunch of coiled rattlesnake, docile while an intruder attempts to enter their den. After that, they would slip the intruder a lethal dose of poison, and quell the fires of an insurrection with a subtle, little bite.
Heero had gathered the four of them together and told them the sordid story of his birth and rebirth at the hands of a twisted group of geneticists. He told them because, although he had already solidified his friendship with each of them, he felt that this was one more element of his life that he had not yet resolved with anyone, not even Relena.
It was a dark time in his past, after his parents had died. Only Dr. J knew of this time, and he had kept a vow with Heero, even up to the time of his death, to never tell anyone. Those who knew Heero always believed that Dr. J's cruel treatment and isolation had driven Heero into such a dark, callous, and suicidal lifestyle. Heero knew that Dr. J alone could not affect his mind in such a radical way, and was always surprised by his friends willingness to except this idea. Dr. J was really taking more blame on behalf of Heero than anyone deserved. Because the old scientist, in all his cruelty and cold treatment, was simply appealing to the seed, the dark purity of a soulless killing machine that had been planted within Heero. Only Dr. J knew about that. No one else.
Heero felt confident and open with his friends now. He felt like he had been reborn a third time, when he went to banish the White Fang and the cursed battleship Libra from existence. He was a whole person now, passionate, understanding, and pure in his intentions and pursuits. However, Heero felt that one more step had to be taken before he could truly rejoin the human race. He told his friends the one secret that he had always kept buried so far in his soul. The secret of his early past, and his awakening.
Everyone stared at Heero in complete shock and bewilderment. Duo had dropped his cup of coffee onto the table. It had dripped down onto the floor and his new pair of leather pants. He didn't seem to notice; his hand was poised midway to his lips as if he were still holding the cup. Even Trowa, who was usually as cold and emotionally unreadable as Heero's, had a stupid look of shock plastered across his face.
Heero said nothing; letting the others absorb this bomb he had just dropped on their heads.
Finally, Trowa decided to break the silence, ironically enough, as he was usually the last to speak, if he even spoke at all.
"Why did you tell us this, Heero?" Trowa asked, the shock still clearing from his eyes. A moment later, they had returned to their familiar state and color of corpse-like green marble.
"All of you have a right to know about my past. A little while ago, I told you that my life was none of your concern. I was wrong. You are concerned about my life, and I have learned to be concerned about all of your lives as well. That is why I told you. I feel no need to keep any secrets, especially from my...my friends.
"I'm glad you consider us your friends, Heero," Quatre said in one of his gestures of feeble sentimentality.
Trowa nodded, understanding, then got up to make himself another pot of coffee. Quatre got a carton of chocolate milk (his favorite) out of the fridge and drained it. Duo pulled out a pack of unfiltered cigarettes, placed one in the corner of his mouth and patted his hands over his jacket pockets, searching for something to light it with. Amongst the crowd of dangling silver zippers on his leather jacket, Duo found some matches. He struck one on the seat of his pants and cooked the loose end of the cigarette offhandedly. Quatre looked shocked.
"What?" Duo said in response to Quatre's expression, like a boy being chided by his harridan mother. "It eases my nerves. Besides, I doubt I'll have the luxury of waiting around 'til lung cancer kills me. It's all part of being Shinigami...the God of Death."
Trowa came back in the room with a round of coffee for everyone. Quatre finished off the carton of chocolate milk and sat down again, wiping a brown milk mustache from his upper lip.
Duo, with the cigarette still dangling on the side of his mouth, grabbed a Styrofoam cup that Trowa had just finished filling with coffee, and chugged it down in two gulps. No one said anything for quite some time.
Duo was still reeling from this huge amount of information being unloaded on him all at once. He always knew Heero was far from normal, but he had never suspected something like this. It was still a little tough to swallow, Heero being born in a tank and screwed around with by a bunch of scientists. It explained a lot, of course, about his name and his ability to survive just about anything that was thrown in his way, but Duo still thought it was just too weird.
Trowa had always been a simple observer above all else, and his past was occupied by varied and squalid jobs he had taken, spying on various people, as a testament to his true nature as an infiltrator and informant. He had probably seen more of the lurid and emotionally unconstrained underbelly of society than the rest of the pilots combined. As a result of this, little shocked him, and he was careful now to hide himself under a mask of flesh. However, the tale of Heero's past haunted and surprised him to the point where he lost the power of that carefully constructed mask and it fell to pieces around his shocked face. He was quick to replace the mask, but it had been a rare and terrifying loss of control for him.
Quatre had so many feelings rushing in his gut and blending together that he couldn't even identify or react to a single one. He knew that he identified with Heero as he never had before, once believing that he was a test tube baby, and sympathized with Heero's feelings of worthlessness and beliefs that he was simply a pawn, an expendable tool to be utilized by uncaring masters for their own comfort. Quatre was beginning to change in a way he had not thought possible. He was beginning to sympathize with the perfect soldier.
In fact, this entire story that Heero had imparted upon them seemed all too familiar to Quatre. In fact, these feelings were so strong that they rose above the boiling froth of emotions in his stomach and into his throat. Yes, he had a strong desire to share his past, or at least the portion of his past that he had never told anyone of, with his friends.
"I gotta take a piss," Duo said flatly, then walked out of the room. Even better, thought Quatre. He was beginning to empathize with Heero, and of course, Trowa he loved like a brother, or perhaps even more...but he was never as comfortable around Duo. Duo was an acquaintance and perhaps even a comrade, but he was not what Quatre considered a true friend. He was truly comfortable now, among friends and ready to give Heero and Trowa an equal burden of personal knowledge to the one that Heero had just passed on.
He cleared his throat and began. Heero and Trowa were quickly distracted from their own thoughts and willingly let Quatre lead them into the annals of his memory.
Note: This fic is a bridge between 'The Awakening,' the tale of Heero's past, and a fic about Quatre's past, entitled 'Disconnect.' The interlude itself also takes place between the Gundam Wing series and Endless Waltz.
Interlude
By Zero's Wings
AC 196 - A new colony has come to the forefront of the Gundam pilots attention. Colony Lx-18999 had began covert internal operations that could have only one agenda: to illegally produce mobile suit weapons to plot an uprising against the other colonies or perhaps even Earth itself. Since Heero had come across this information, he and four of the other Gundam pilots had rented a small apartment in the center of the colony, only a few blocks away from the capital building. Only Wufei did not come, and no one, not even Sally, who always kept tabs on him, knew where he had gone. The rest of them, Duo, Trowa, and Quatre, had put their respective lives on hold to prepare for the conflict that Heero was sure would come from this colony. They were watching and waiting, like a bunch of coiled rattlesnake, docile while an intruder attempts to enter their den. After that, they would slip the intruder a lethal dose of poison, and quell the fires of an insurrection with a subtle, little bite.
Heero had gathered the four of them together and told them the sordid story of his birth and rebirth at the hands of a twisted group of geneticists. He told them because, although he had already solidified his friendship with each of them, he felt that this was one more element of his life that he had not yet resolved with anyone, not even Relena.
It was a dark time in his past, after his parents had died. Only Dr. J knew of this time, and he had kept a vow with Heero, even up to the time of his death, to never tell anyone. Those who knew Heero always believed that Dr. J's cruel treatment and isolation had driven Heero into such a dark, callous, and suicidal lifestyle. Heero knew that Dr. J alone could not affect his mind in such a radical way, and was always surprised by his friends willingness to except this idea. Dr. J was really taking more blame on behalf of Heero than anyone deserved. Because the old scientist, in all his cruelty and cold treatment, was simply appealing to the seed, the dark purity of a soulless killing machine that had been planted within Heero. Only Dr. J knew about that. No one else.
Heero felt confident and open with his friends now. He felt like he had been reborn a third time, when he went to banish the White Fang and the cursed battleship Libra from existence. He was a whole person now, passionate, understanding, and pure in his intentions and pursuits. However, Heero felt that one more step had to be taken before he could truly rejoin the human race. He told his friends the one secret that he had always kept buried so far in his soul. The secret of his early past, and his awakening.
Everyone stared at Heero in complete shock and bewilderment. Duo had dropped his cup of coffee onto the table. It had dripped down onto the floor and his new pair of leather pants. He didn't seem to notice; his hand was poised midway to his lips as if he were still holding the cup. Even Trowa, who was usually as cold and emotionally unreadable as Heero's, had a stupid look of shock plastered across his face.
Heero said nothing; letting the others absorb this bomb he had just dropped on their heads.
Finally, Trowa decided to break the silence, ironically enough, as he was usually the last to speak, if he even spoke at all.
"Why did you tell us this, Heero?" Trowa asked, the shock still clearing from his eyes. A moment later, they had returned to their familiar state and color of corpse-like green marble.
"All of you have a right to know about my past. A little while ago, I told you that my life was none of your concern. I was wrong. You are concerned about my life, and I have learned to be concerned about all of your lives as well. That is why I told you. I feel no need to keep any secrets, especially from my...my friends.
"I'm glad you consider us your friends, Heero," Quatre said in one of his gestures of feeble sentimentality.
Trowa nodded, understanding, then got up to make himself another pot of coffee. Quatre got a carton of chocolate milk (his favorite) out of the fridge and drained it. Duo pulled out a pack of unfiltered cigarettes, placed one in the corner of his mouth and patted his hands over his jacket pockets, searching for something to light it with. Amongst the crowd of dangling silver zippers on his leather jacket, Duo found some matches. He struck one on the seat of his pants and cooked the loose end of the cigarette offhandedly. Quatre looked shocked.
"What?" Duo said in response to Quatre's expression, like a boy being chided by his harridan mother. "It eases my nerves. Besides, I doubt I'll have the luxury of waiting around 'til lung cancer kills me. It's all part of being Shinigami...the God of Death."
Trowa came back in the room with a round of coffee for everyone. Quatre finished off the carton of chocolate milk and sat down again, wiping a brown milk mustache from his upper lip.
Duo, with the cigarette still dangling on the side of his mouth, grabbed a Styrofoam cup that Trowa had just finished filling with coffee, and chugged it down in two gulps. No one said anything for quite some time.
Duo was still reeling from this huge amount of information being unloaded on him all at once. He always knew Heero was far from normal, but he had never suspected something like this. It was still a little tough to swallow, Heero being born in a tank and screwed around with by a bunch of scientists. It explained a lot, of course, about his name and his ability to survive just about anything that was thrown in his way, but Duo still thought it was just too weird.
Trowa had always been a simple observer above all else, and his past was occupied by varied and squalid jobs he had taken, spying on various people, as a testament to his true nature as an infiltrator and informant. He had probably seen more of the lurid and emotionally unconstrained underbelly of society than the rest of the pilots combined. As a result of this, little shocked him, and he was careful now to hide himself under a mask of flesh. However, the tale of Heero's past haunted and surprised him to the point where he lost the power of that carefully constructed mask and it fell to pieces around his shocked face. He was quick to replace the mask, but it had been a rare and terrifying loss of control for him.
Quatre had so many feelings rushing in his gut and blending together that he couldn't even identify or react to a single one. He knew that he identified with Heero as he never had before, once believing that he was a test tube baby, and sympathized with Heero's feelings of worthlessness and beliefs that he was simply a pawn, an expendable tool to be utilized by uncaring masters for their own comfort. Quatre was beginning to change in a way he had not thought possible. He was beginning to sympathize with the perfect soldier.
In fact, this entire story that Heero had imparted upon them seemed all too familiar to Quatre. In fact, these feelings were so strong that they rose above the boiling froth of emotions in his stomach and into his throat. Yes, he had a strong desire to share his past, or at least the portion of his past that he had never told anyone of, with his friends.
"I gotta take a piss," Duo said flatly, then walked out of the room. Even better, thought Quatre. He was beginning to empathize with Heero, and of course, Trowa he loved like a brother, or perhaps even more...but he was never as comfortable around Duo. Duo was an acquaintance and perhaps even a comrade, but he was not what Quatre considered a true friend. He was truly comfortable now, among friends and ready to give Heero and Trowa an equal burden of personal knowledge to the one that Heero had just passed on.
He cleared his throat and began. Heero and Trowa were quickly distracted from their own thoughts and willingly let Quatre lead them into the annals of his memory.