Traitor to the Cause

by the Black Rose

I do not own Gundam Wing. This fan fiction has no commercial value and I am not making any kind of profit or income off of this.

Chapter 4

"Damn you, Zeches!" Heero yelled and punched the control panel of his shuttle. It was a long ride back to L1, and all he had was time. Time to think - about everything he had done wrong. "Why am I so stupid? I didn't even think of taking her with me!"

He ran his fingers through his unruly hair and tried in vain to block out the scene of a few hours ago. But in his mind he saw himself shaking her, yelling that he hated her. And he knew that those feelings she had professed so long ago died within her this night. He was certain she hated him now.


He woke up to sunlight dancing in his dorm room window. His eyes opened, and he tried to sit up, but the blinding light was causing the back of his head to ache. A groan escaped his lips.

"Ah, so you've decided to rejoin the living?" His roommate, Brian, a young man his age that played on the college soccer team with Heero, called out from across the room. He was sitting at his desk, but at the sound of his roommate waking up had turned around in his chair to face Heero. "It's about time."

Heero tried to sit up again, taking in the rather blurry appearance of the blond-haired brown-eyed young man. "Ugh. Why do I feel like I self-destructed a mobile suit?" he wondered briefly, but didn't dare say it out loud. Instead he asked what time it was.

"Oh. What time is it?" Brian's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Hmm, let me see - it's Tuesday, fuckin' four o'clock p.m.! You've been out for two days!"

"Shit. What the hell happened?"

"What are you asking me for? You show up here falling down drunk Sunday night at two a.m., after being god-only-knows-where for the last three days, and you're asking ME what happened?"

Heero shook his aching head lightly from side to side, trying to clear his befuddled brain. Memories of what he said to Relena came flooding into his mind, and he groaned again and lay back; he pulled the pillow over his head. "Relena…."

"Oh, no you don't. You have some explaining to do. Get up," Brian said in a commanding voice to his roommate, teammate, and supposed friend for the last year and a half.

Heero groaned again and sat up. "What?"

"Well, first off, you're going to have a shower. And shave! God, you look like shit. Have you even bathed since you disappeared Friday?"

Heero glared at him from his position on his bed.

"And then you're going to tell me who she is."

Heero's usual death glare dropped from his face.

"Don't look so surprised. You're as transparent as glass. Only a woman could do this to a man. And for her to have done this to you, who are normally so immune to their charms, she must be someone pretty special," he said with a slight smile beginning to tug on his lips. "So, I'm all ears!" He pretended to rub his hands together gleefully.

"I thought you were usually all mouth," Heero retorted dryly.

"Go shower. Then we'll talk." Brian smiled with a hint of mischief and curiosity glinting in his warm brown eyes.

"I never said I'd talk," Heero growled at his friend's cheerful expression.

"You owe me on this one, and my payment will be information."

He looked way too smug for Heero's liking. "I don't owe you anything," Heero said with a deep scowl that some thought was permanently etched onto his features.

"Yes, you do. While you've been battling self-induced alcohol poisoning, I covered your ass. I went to your teachers and got your assignments," he ticked off an imaginary list with his fingers. "…and told the coach you were sick. He bit my head off and demanded a doctor's note! So, then it cost me a c-note to get the Master Forger to give me one with your name on it. His usual fee is ten bucks, but since it had to have your name on it, he charged me ten-times that amount…."

Heero rubbed his temples as his roommate rambled on. He slowly rose to his feet and shuffled towards the bathroom to take a shower. When he came out, clean and clean-shaven, a towel wrapped around his waist, his roommate was still ranting.

"…and if that isn't enough, I'll just keep pestering you until you talk," Brian finally finished.

"It won't work. I'm used to dealing with loud-mouthed idiots," Heero said flatly.

Brian's cheerful face fell. As if almost on cue, a call came through on Heero's laptop.

"Hey hey hey! There's Mr. Sunshine! Where ya been, Heero buddy?" Duo's smiling face appeared on screen.

"See what I mean?" Heero glared at Brian, before sitting down in front of his desk.

"What?" Duo asked, his smile fading.

"Nothing. What do you want?" Heero's voice was flat.

Duo glanced up at where Brian was standing. Heero turned and looked up at his roommate. "This is personal."

"I know when I'm not wanted," Brian tossed over his shoulder as he opened the door. "But I'll be back, and you're going to tell me," he said and left.

"What was that about?" Duo asked.

"Nothing."

"Okay…So, I tried to call a couple of times this weekend, but you were out. Go anywhere in particular?"

"Nah, just around. What'd you call for?"

"This line secure?" Duo's voice turned serious.

Heero nodded.

"Well, we need your help to locate her…."

"Who's 'we'?"

"Me, Quatre, and Trowa! Wufei's around for back-up purposes, but with his job in the Preventers, it's a little more difficult for him to get away."

"Hn."

"We're not going to let this go down without a fight. We owe her that much." Duo smiled slowly, a hint of danger in his eyes. "So, are you in - he asks knowingly," Duo joked.

"No."

The smile fell from Duo's lips and his brows knitted together. "WHAT? You're saying no? You're going to just abandon her? They're gonna kill her for God's sake! I mean, what happened to 'I'll always protect you no matter who your enemy may be'?" Duo's expression turned solemn.

Heero winced at Duo's words. "She'll be fine where she is."

"Where? She's been declared a traitor to the government of the Earth and all of the colonies! Where could she be safe, except under our protection?"

"She's with her brother - on Mars. It's not a member of ESUN; it's still just a territory."

"Oh, so you looked up Zeches's number in the Mars yellow pages under ghosts, and asked him where his sister was?" Duo asked with a flippant gesture denoting the sarcasm of that statement.

"No, she told me where she was going." Heero replied, his hands gripping the edge of the desk so tightly his knuckles had turned white, but the look on his face gave nothing away.

"Oh-ho!" Realization dawned on Duo's face. "So that's where you went this weekend!" Duo grinned.

"I really don't want to talk about it, Duo. What's done is done, and no one can change it."

Duo blinked and then frowned. "Change it? Who's trying to change anything?" He looked at Heero searchingly.

Heero glared at him.

"Oh, you didn't!" Duo paled. "Are you a total idiot?" he screamed. "How could you? I never gave you the authority to turn me in!"

"Shut up. I didn't ask her to turn you in…" His eyes flickered. "Just me."

"Oh, nice. Way to slap her in the face, Yuy." Duo glared at him. "Should she lay on the ground so you don't have to lift your foot quite so high to kick her?"

"Duo…" Heero's voice held a hint of warning.

"You're not human. You're still that cold machine you always were. I'm beginning to believe you always will be." Duo's angry glare subsided to a wistful expression, making him look years older. "I can't believe I ever called you a friend."

Heero felt like he had been punched. He stood up and bent over the desk in a menacing pose. "And what should I have done? Kept silent? Taken her back here with me, so I can drag her down? What? Tell me what should I have done?" Heero asked, unable to keep a slight tremor out of his voice.

"You should have told her how you felt about her. And if you couldn't do that, you should have at least thanked her. Anything, but tell the girl to turn you in after she gave up everything for you!"

Heero had never seen Duo so angry. His face was flushed, his violet eyes were blazing with fury. Heero just glared at the video screen. He sat back down, and ran his fingers through his hair. "Zeches can protect her better than I can, Duo. Just drop it."

"That's typical. The two of you always decide what you think is best for her, then play your little war games with her as the prize. You're pathetic," Duo sneered. "Thanks for the info on where to find her. I'd tell you not to worry, but it'd be a waste of breath."

There was a pause in the heated discussion. Both men glared at the image on the video screen. Finally, Heero broke the silence.

"I do worry," he said in a quiet voice.

"What?"

"I do worry. About her. All the time." He took a deep breath. "Just promise me something."

"What is it?"

"Promise that you'll take care of her, if she decides to go with you and Quatre."

"You know we'll protect her with our lives," Duo said in a serious tone.

"I know. I just don't think…." He bowed his head as his voice trailed off.

"You don't think what?"

Heero looked back up at Duo, his blue eyes blazing with emotion. "Nothing," he said and looked away.

Duo remained silent.

"I'll transmit the secure line information to Quatre so you can contact them on Mars. Keep me posted," Heero commanded.

"Will do," Duo sounded a little more cheerful.

"Oh, and give my regards to Zeches when you see him," Heero said with a smirk.

Duo's smile turned mischievous. "Oh, I will, don't worry!"

Heero terminated the connection and sighed. He clicked the laptop shut and buried his face in his hands. He sat there a moment, then opened up the top drawer of his desk. A quick glance immediately alerted him that something was missing. He glared at the drawer, and then turned to the door.

"Brian!" he shouted.