Title: "Scars"
Author: Demeter
Disclaimer: All rights and privileges to Shin Kidousenki Gundam Wing are trademarks and property of Sunrise, Bandai, Sotsu Agency, and associated parties. All characters belong to them, and all stories, relationships, ideas are fiction, in no way related to the original storyline. The story, the relationships and original characters within the fic are copyright of the author Demeter.
Part Five: Do not go Gently into the Quiet Night
Everyone wants the princess and her heroes to heal the cracks, and stop the wars between them. Yet, can a broken vase truly be mended? Or is something more sinister than the truth going to break them apart?
~*~*~*~*~*~
Quatre had been apprehensive the whole way there on the car. All morning, he had been fluttering, from one pilot to the other and admonishing them to be nice. There had been a tense atmosphere around them ever since they had gotten the mission for protecting Relena and Dorothy at the beach. When Duo had read the printout, he had enthusiastically agreed, and jumped headfirst into the attic to look for his swimming trunks.
Wufei had only complained about the uselessness of onna and baka's in the world, and if there were kind one's watching, both would drown.
Quatre had told them all most disapprovingly, that if any of them even said a word like that to Relena, he would get mad.
That had shut the Chinese pilot up.
Trowa only watched the proceedings with an amused and affectionate air for the Arabian pilot.
Heero didn't do anything at all, except say in a monotonous voice, "Mission accepted."
And in the end, here they all were, in Relena's hallway, waiting for the secretary (Melissa was it?) to bring the princess out. Quatre glanced around the dark hallway, and unconsciously wrapped his arms around his body. He had never liked the weather in the Sank Kingdom much. Compared to the desert, it was almost like a refrigerator. Trowa directed one, calm green eye at the blonde, before standing closer protectively.
Quatre basked thankfully in the body heat of the tallest pilot.
Heero had been irritable all morning; even going so far as snapping at Duo for a minor infraction. The genki American pilot had not seemed deterred in his attempts in trying to wring a smile from the emotionless soldier. Wufei glanced at his watch, before muttering an oath about women who were always late. He was in a foul mood, not helped by the fact that the secretary had been cool, almost to the point of frigid to them. She had taken one look at their faces, before inviting them icily.
No doubt she disliked them intensely. Either because of Relena or they were just naturally disgusting to her.
Quatre was leaning more for the former.
There was a rustle, and Heero whipped around, his eyes narrowing at the slight noise. Dorothy had slipped in from a side room, almost unnoticed, if not for the hearing capabilities of the "perfect soldier". Her eyes held a promise of blood, as she locked eyes with him. She communicated her thoughts with one perfectly arched eyebrow. Her suddenly feral glint warned him to be careful of what he said.
"Miss Relena, the pilots are in here."
Everyone tensed.
Relena came in, her face blank.
No tears.
No whining.
No glomping.
Just blankness.
Wufei raised an eyebrow at her expression, before smirking slightly. He said nothing however, as he bowed stiffly, opening the door for her. She nodded, and walked out into the warm sunlight, allowing the rays to drift into the darkened hallways. Her sandy hair lit up and reflected the bright prisms coming from the sun. Relena stepped daintily into the limousine, and sat silently, ignoring them.
Dorothy watched the entire proceedings, and sighed.
Quatre eyed her with a bit of hesitation, before asking softly, "Where is it exactly we're going?"
"Malone Beach."
Duo's eyes widened, and he suddenly gave a short bark of harsh laughter. "You want to recreate that little scene Jousan and Heero had? Hope they'll suddenly fall in love again?"
Dorothy's ice-blue orbs narrowed. Grabbing his arm, she ruthlessly yanked him to the side where Relena would not hear of see them. Her voice dangerously low, she hissed, "If you DARE, Maxwell, I swear, on that braid of yours, that I will kill you. Slow and painful. And HE will be able to do nothing." She shoved him backwards, and he banged the brick wall, eliciting a loud ,"Ouch!", out of him.
She spun around to them all, and murmured, "That goes for all of you."
Stalking to the limousine, she slid in, and slammed the door with a loud clang, before the driver floored the machine, and they were left in the dust.
"Looks like you'll have to be careful, Maxwell."
"Very funny, Wufie."
"KISAMA! Don't call me that!"
"I'll call you what I want, Wufie!"
Quatre sighed at the now-familiar image of the two arguing. Turning, he climbed into their own car, an unmarked car that they would use to follow her. Heero took up the drivers seat, and the rest piled in, with Duo in shotgun, Trowa behind Duo, him in the middle, and Wufei behind Duo. They drove the entire way silently, once in a while swerving to avoid another car.
"She doesn't seem very happy about going on this trip with us." Trowa observed, his green eyes expressionless.
"Perhaps she.... " Quatre's voice trailed off, his blue eyes worried.
"Oi, Heero!" Duo suddenly said, and pointed at the car in front of them. The other car had suddenly speeded up, and was quickly driving away. "Hit the accelerator!"
He gave Duo a withering look, before flooring the car, and jumping after the limousine. Soon, they were neck-and-neck, and Wufei glanced over, choking on the water he was drinking, when he saw that the person driving was Relena Peacecraft.
"Hold it, Yuy! It's the brat driving!"
He immediately slowed, and they fell back. Trowa craned his neck, saw the familiar head of sand, before sighing. "Looks like she's trying to get away from us."
"Why in the hell would she try to get away when she was the one to hire us?" Duo's elfin face crinkled into a questioning frown.
"No, remember it was actually Zechs who called us in."
"That's right. We never even saw Miss Relena." Quatre said slowly, his eyes fixed on the rapidly moving car ahead of them.
Arching an eyebrow, he suddenly gave a maniacal laugh, and then flopped back into his seat, saying, "Well, it's too complicated for MY head. I'm going to sleep. Call me when we get there. Turning on his side, he gave a dramatic yawn, before tucking in.
But his thoughts were still awake.
God.
What if Heero still loves Jousan?
No, it can't be. He wouldn't. There's no fucking way he would do that. He proved it to me already. Proved it already. I can't doubt him. I won't doubt him. I won't be like Jousan. No fucking way.
"But what if?"
Leave me alone.
"He might still hold a flame for her."
Shut the fuck up.
"He may just hold you as a replacement for something he deems himself not worthy for."
He LOVES me.
"Then why would he agree to protect her?"
It's his mission! I'm not listening too you.
"Oh? His mission? Isn't the war over?"
There are still people wanting to kill Jousan.
"So no one wants to kill you."
I'm safe. I can protect myself.
"Doesn't someone who loves someone want to protect THEM."
He trusts me.
"Oh.."
I hate you.
"But I'm you. So you hate yourself."
"Duo? Duo? DUO!" The aforementioned young man stirred, before opening one eye groggily.
"Yeah?"
Quatre gave him a gentle smile before saying, "We're here." Duo craned his head, and saw the vast expanse of the ocean. Opening the door quickly, he smelt the tangy air, and felt the warm rays of the sun wash over him like the warmth of a loving caress.
He shivered and then turned slightly before winking at Heero.
Heero only raised an eyebrow, before briefly pinching Duo's butt as he passed by.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"Well, that was a total waste of time."
Quatre shook his head at Wufei's comment, before sighing. Speaking aloud, "In a way, it was. Miss Relena never even talked to us the whole time, while Miss Dorothy ignored us on a whole."
Trowa shrugged slightly, "What can you expect? See her jump for joy?"
"The water was great though! We gotta do this again sometimes!" He wrung out the water from his braided hair, as well as he could, before saying cheerfully, "And it wasn't a total loss; jousan doesn't look as pale now!"
Wufei snorted, before he piled the rest of the equipment back into the car.
Heero slipped into the driver's seat, but not before he glanced appreciatively at Duo's glistening body, the dusky skin, combined with hard muscles, caused more than one hormone in his brain to jump-start. Sighing, he pushed the delectable image from his brain, and made a mental note to get Duo into the bedroom they shared as soon as they got back.
Relena stared at the group.
They seem to live life to the fullest; even Wufei and Heero.
Something squeezed her throat and quickly, she turned away, to stare at the endless expanse of blue which lay before her. There were sparkling diamonds that floated by the thousands on the surface. Waves washed up against the shore softly, and as she bent over, she dug out a handful of sand.
The sand was gritty, drying, the grains scratching the palm very slightly. She smiled slightly, as memories of weekly beach trips with her mother and Pargan surfaced. Her haggard face lightened a little, before she stood, stretched, glancing around her. The pilots were preoccupied with packing and Dorothy was distracted, looking for her wristwatch.
Relena hesitated only one moment, before quickly working her way down the sloping hill, encountering the one place on the beach where everything had started.
The place her life had changed.
Cerulean blue eyes stared at the endless sea.
I met Heero here.
Was it really so long ago?
Three, four years.
Very, very short in terms of the feel.
I can't believe how bitter I am.
Why? Why can't I congratulate Heero... and Duo. Why can't I be like everyone else? Why can't I be the forgiving one here? I am not a bitter person. I am not. I am not. I am not. I'm not a psychopath. I'm not obsessive. I'm not. They aren't right. None of them. I'm not that way. I'm not a bitter, obsessive psychopath, who had nothing better to do than stalk one, Heero Yuy.
God, am I?
Relena shook from her reverie. Unbidden tears had gathered at the corners of her eyes. Brushing them away hastily, berating herself for crying, she continued her trek down to the water. Sighing gustily, she chewed on her bottom lip before taking her shoes off and walking into the ocean.
Lucky I wore my swimsuit under my clothing.
Her steps led her deeper and deeper, before she felt the cool water washing her waist. The refreshing burst of salt air entered her lungs, causing her breath to come easier.
So nice.
I really should get out of the office more.
Maybe this is what "they" felt.
Maybe I can be free too.
Heero.
Relena stopped midway. Her lips curving into a half-bitter, half-mocking smile, she idly splashed the water around her. Months had passed since she had felt this good. Too long to count. The chairs, though designed for comfort, took their toll on the butt after a while.
She giggled.
"RELENA!!!"
Relena turned, startled. Her eyes encompassed the five Gundam pilots running, swimming toward her. She was allowed only a few moments of wonderment, before she found one arm caught by Wufei, the other by Trowa. Then, her face left with blank amazement, she was dragged back toward shore. Starting to struggle, her voice sputtered indignantly, choking when sea water entered her mouth.
Bringing her back onto shore, she found herself dragged onto the sand, before being dumped rudely. She started coughing, her knees and hands digging into the sand, with the force of her hacking. When she finally stopped, she looked up wearily. Five angry eyes stared back at her and she gulped, suddenly feeling a trill of fear run up her spine.
"Onna, if your going to kill yourself, go somewhere private where we can't see!"
"Kill myself?" Relena gaped at the Chinese man, before swiveling her head toward the other pilots. "What are you talking about?"
Wufei stopped mid-rant, and stared at her.
"You're not?" Quatre asked, his voice weak.
"Um... well, no."
As one, they all turned to stare at Dorothy. Her face had started flushing, and for the first time they had ever seen, she sputtered.
A silence followed around them.
Their eyes once again turned to fix on Relena, and her wet hair clung to her face, the strands dark against the paleness of her skin. Her bangs blocked the cerulean eyes from view; none of them knew what she was feeling at the moment.
Relena drew up, her long legs taut and smooth. A wooden expression covered her face, and her mouth was set into a thin line. Her voice queer, she asked, "You really think so little of me? So little that I would kill myself just because of people like yourselves?"
Her voice grew sharper, rancid knives dripping from each word. "I would never kill myself. Don't people depend on me to preserve peace? Aren't I the dove of peace? I would not be so selfish as to give up the shaky peace because I have my own greedy and spoiled desires." Her last words were thrown out in bitterness, and she tossed her head up, the blues eyes stormy with pain and betrayal.
She shook the water from her hair, the droplets cascading over the still-kneeling pilots. She shut eyes tightly, silently telling herself not to cry. Pressing her lips together, she stalked back to the car, calling over her shoulder, her voice devoid of emotion, "We better go home Dorothy."
The car door slammed shut, and the tinted windows hid her from view.
Dorothy sighed, her own face regretful, before meandering back to the limousine slowly.
Hesitating, she looked over her shoulder. They were still there, their faces stony, not even Maxwell smiling. Sighing, her soft words floated over to them, "All of you better go tell Milliardo of your resignations." Shutting the driver door, she drove off, leaving the pilots to fend for themselves.
~*~*~*~*~*~
The drive back to the mansion had been silent. Dorothy had attempted to start a conversation several times, only to be rebutted with icy words or short answers. In the end, she had given up communication and had lapsed into watching the sandy-blonde.
Entering the courtyard, Dorothy murmured a quick thanks to the driver, warning him below her breath to not say a word of the happenings that day. He nodded gravely before bringing the car into the stalls.
Her footsteps clicked on the marble floor, bringing several maids to the front, fussing over Relena's damp clothing. Dorothy watched, standing to the side, her eyes narrowing as Relena submitted to their ministrations without a word, almost like a..........
"Beautiful doll, isn't she?"
Without turning, she murmured, "Beautiful, yes. But I never thought she would turn out like this."
Catherine sighed, her voice gravely from jet lag. "Life's just full of unexpected surprises, hm?"
"I suppose."
"You know she can't take any more."
"I know."
"Then why aren't you doing anything?"
Dorothy spun on her feet, a wrathful reply on her lips. She saw only the question and quiet remorse in the older girl's eyes. Narrowing her own eyes, she spit out bitterly, "I've tried. There's nothing we can do. Relena's always been fragile. We just thought she was strong enough to bear everything until it was too late. You've seen the doctor reports, haven't you? She's seen a psychiatrist before. When the Darlians first brought her from the destruction of the Sank Kingdom. All she could do was cry until the bastard told her it wasn't proper for a princess to cry. Wasn't damn proper!" She spat, the anger leaking from her like a balloon punctured by a porcupine.
Catherine watched with expressionless eyes. Closing her gray eyes, she patted Dorothy on the back before speaking. "Yes, I saw the reports. Sally showed them to me. But, surely one doctor couldn't have influenced her enough to stop crying altogether."
"I've looked into that." She paused, her voice bitter. "According to soldier-boy, Relena's cried before. She had tears in her eyes when he left her on that ship, that last battle, a year before Marimeia. I've asked that little groupie of hers. She wept a bit when Heero ripped up her invitation." She stopped again, her voice stabbing. "The heartless bastard."
"Any real bouts of crying? Those seem pretty petty to me."
"No."
"Oh."
"Ms. Dorothy? Ms. Catherine?"
They turned to see a servant bobbing a curtsey. "Very sorry to interrupt you, but Miss Darlian requests your presence in the ma-" She was interrupted by a loud crash. Both girls pulled weapons out of nowhere, Dorothy, a gun, Catherine, a handful of throwing darts.
On the trellis to Relena's room, in the dim lights from the castle walls, they saw the unmistakable glitter of a gun.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Quatre knocked on Relena's door.
"Enter."
Shivering at the cold tone, he pulled on the reluctant three, before toward forbidden area.
She turned from her seat at the window, her eyes icy and hard. Her voice cut them to the bone, each word slicing at their hearts. "Is there something you wanted?" Directing her question at Trowa and Quatre, she did not even look at the other three.
"Relena, we're here to inform you… Well you see… We can't…"
Heero shoved forward, his Prussian blue eyes stony. "We're resigning from bodyguard duty."
Relena gazed at him, her expression carefully neutral. She turned back to the window. "Oh?"
"Aren't you going to say anything?"
"What can I say, Mr. Chang? Get on my knees and beg for you all to stay?"
"Relena, please.."
There was no answer from the princess as she continued staring out the window.
Trowa sighed, before silently tugging on his lover's arm, patting the worried expression from Quatre's face. Quatre bit his lip, before plunging ahead one more time. "Relena, believe me, if we...-" Before he could finish his sentence, the shattering of the window interrupted him. A figure rolled in through the shower of glittering glass. The next thing they knew, Relena was yanked backward, by a strong arm, and held to the person with a gun to her head.
As the dust cleared, the pilot's eyes widened, as a lithe figure, seemingly poured into a leather body suit, appeared. The dull metal of the gun gleamed in the light, and dark eyes glittered maliciously below a head of wavy, silvery hair. Relena had gone white, her lips pale.
"Stay back, or Relena Peacecraft is food for the floor!" The sharp command immediately caused the Gundam pilots to back away, but not to lower their guns, which had been whipped out of nowhere. The young woman perused them slowly, her gaze narrowing, as they fell on Heero.
"Well, now. Relena Peacecraft. What a situation you're in. Princess of the Sank Kingdom caught in a trap." She pushed the gun harder against Relena's temple, causing the girl to wince with pain.
"Let her go." Heero's quiet voice echoed in the silence.
"Not a chance. Her death will mean the end of peace. That is all I ask for." She grinned darkly.
Relena's eyes widened, filling with terror. Going eyes steely, she spoke in a tightly controlled voice. "Go ahead and kill me. Milliardo Peacecraft will still continue down the road of peace. As long as there are people, there is hope. Terrorists like yourself will never win."
There was a silence.
"Well, now. Isn't little Miss Peacecraft the heroic princess?" She looked around at the five slowly, before continuing. "But, I can gather that if she died, you would be EVER so heartbroken. So I'll strike a deal. If you," pointing at Heero, "and you," pointing at Trowa, "kill the braided one, the blond one, and the dark-haired one, then I'll let her go. The loss of three Gundam Pilots will be just enough to pay for the life of Relena Peacecraft."
A horrified silence followed.
Heero had gone rigid, his Prussian blue eyes showing a flicker of disgust.
Trowa kept the expressionless mask on, but put down the gun.
Relena was the first to speak. "You can't do that! You cannot ask to exchange one life for three!" She struggled harder, desperately trying to loosen the stranger's arm around her.
The girl only tightened her hold.
Heero and Trowa glanced at each other.
Then they turned to the terrorist.
"We refuse."
Another silence.
"Surprising, but not entirely unexpected. Very well. Say goodbye to your... friends... Relena Peacecraft. We're going to go."
She threw something toward the pilots and instinctively, they ducked.
Something exploded.
"Goodbye pilots. You will pay for your callousness to Peacecraft."
And the two figures disappeared.
Milliardo Peacecraft burst in through the double French doors. He was followed closely behind by Dorothy, Noins, and Catherine. He took one look at the mess, before rushing to the window and howling out his only sister's name.
~*~ Part Five ~*~
~*~ FINIS ~*~
