Gundam Wing: La Femmes
A Fanfic by Lady Lye
(c)2001
Battle Chapter: Who Can Win The Stars (Part One)
aka Chp 38
Rated for strong language on behalf of the characters. Remember- it's not the author w/ the potty mouth-it's her potty-mouthed characters.
Disclaimer: I do not own the whole GW thing... If I did I sure as h*ll wouldn't be here wasting my time writing fanfics about them- I'd be using them as my you-know-what slaves per my latest obsession. So don't try to sue me- it ain't worth it.
Note: rough translation for my rough use of Spanish can be found at the bottom of the chapter. This will include all previous phrases.
Welcome to the miraculously short BC. I have NO inspiration here. It SUCKS. The idea- get in, get the idea, get out, and go. T_T I hate leaving the middle empty like this… I'll HAVE to go back and fix it… *bitterly sarcastic* Course, no one seems to like Estelle and/or Quatre anyway… (See the website, where there are polls to vote for your fave Femmes!! And their men!!) *sigh* On with it…
________________________________
Gundame: (pronunciation varies between gun-dum-eh and gun-dam-ay, but never gun-dame.) The mobile suits used by the five new girls. They are made of gundanium alloy but are coated with a newly developed substance making their shell even tougher than the gundams. Their pilots are known as the Dames.
_________________________________
Estelle dropped nimbly to the ground and slid into the shadows as a man passed by. She had just HAD to hide her MS in the middle of the city, hadn't she? Well, it WAS about the only place they would never think to look… She made sure he was gone before running up the alleyway to slip behind a pile of junk. Taking out a sturdy, if small, crowbar, she used it to help lever up the heavy metal covering the entryway to her hangar. She dropped the five feet inside, ducked to recover it and made her way in the dark to the hangar itself, right in the middle of the underground network of tunnels below the city. The stench couldn't be helped.
"Time to give the kiss of death to some more of Markiah's Soldiers, eh friend?" She said, flicking a main light switch to reveal her massive gundame. "Let's give 'em hell."
_________________________________
"Mr. Winner, is it true that you're here to discuss buying out Brazillia Connections?"
"How do your sisters feel about this bold move?"
"Mr. Winner, can you explain your strange absence for the last two months?"
"Mr. Winner- Mr. Winner- Mr. Winner-"
Their voices blurred together, making it easier for him to ignore them. Body guards and his financial and PR advisors helped to keep them from totally surrounding him and stopping his progress altogether. Reporters. He hated reporters like these, who looked for the sensational only, not caring what the truth was.
Quatre- Mr. Winner- finally made it to the lobby of the building where his meeting would take place. Yes, he was here to see if Brazillia Connections was worth adding to the Winner's vast business. Yes, his sisters approved- they had been the ones to suggest it. Of course he COULD explain his absence, but why would he? Really, that information was top secret.
"Mr. Winner- Mr. Winner-"
He let his people turn them away while he took the elevator to the ninth floor. He was only here because it was convenient to his real purposes. Such a coincidence that his sister Alexandra had found a company ready for them to acquire located right where he needed to be. And he did need to be here. Impatience was the only word to describe him right now. He wanted out of business suits and office buildings and onto the streets to find Estelle. Lord only knew what was happening to her right now. All those girls… they were so inexperienced and they were being shipped off on missions like this? When he found her he would- he would what? Tell her to give up and go home?
"Ah, Mr. Winner," a short man obviously of the indigenous Indian peoples offered Quatre his hand. "It is excellent to finally do business with you."
He would have to think about that later. "I agree, Mr. Shakal." Quatre forced himself to pay attention as the man began a lengthy and involved multimedia presentation to prove that his firm was worthy of being acquired by the Winners. It was just like any other presentation… never mind. He eventually tuned it out. Afterall, he wouldn't be making the final decision in reality anyway.
A loud explosion rocked the entire building and the presentation abruptly stopped.
"What the hell!?"
"It's a Mobile Suit!"
"It's destroying the foreign military base!"
"It's- It's-" they all stared out the windows in total shock.
"It's a gundam," Quatre whispered, awestruck, before running out of the room.
_________________________________
Mobile suits seemed to pour out of the building almost faster than she could shoot them down. They came at her from all sides, trying to distract her with taunting tricks, but Estelle Brownlow was not to be toyed with. With a yell she aimed straight at the source. "Target Lock- accept your Final Kiss!" The hangar burst into flames and she smiled grimly.
She looked down at her beeping radar. "What the-?!" Something new was heading into the battle zone. It distracted her so much that she nearly didn't see the suit flying straight for her face. "AH!" she quickly got her weapon between her and it and fired. "Shite, that was close…"
"This is Former Gundam Pilot 04, I demand that you state your name and intentions," a voice buzzed through over the comm.
"Gundam Pilot?" Estelle blinked. "I thought they disappeared after the war… You can call me Dame 02, Pilot 04. I'm here to wipe out as much of this base as I can. I suggest you get out of my way." Gundams… predecessor to her precious gundame. She racked her brain for everything Madam Anthony had ever told them. The five young gundam pilots who had fought in the last war were supposed to be the toughest soldiers of their time. But they had disappeared into the stuff of legends, hadn't they? The war had been so very, very long ago… She watched a Virgo come into her field of vision.
"Are you the same suit that fought in Sydney?"
"How would you know that?" she quickly cut down another Capricorn.
"I was there."
So familiar… she knew it sounded familiar… if she could just think who- she prepared to fire again.
"You're Estelle, aren't you?"
Her eyes widened in shock and the cannon's blast missed it's course by a long shot, destroying one of the buildings instead of the latest MS. "Who the hell are you?" she croaked. "Who are you!?" she angrily turned the cannon on him. A fuzzy image began to appear on the comm. She squinted at it. Bl-blonde hair? And blue eyes and- and- "QUATRE!" she screamed as a Scorpio plowed into him from behind. She could hear his yell over the comm., but couldn't bear to watch the pain register on his face as his suit collapsed to the ground. "Quatre! Quatre! You- Damn you, Markiah!" she destroyed every suit in the vicinity, taking the rest of the base down with them. "Quatre-" she couldn't get the gundame to move fast enough and she jumped down from the cockpit, running to his fallen MS. "Quatre!"
"Uhh," he groaned, managing to open the hatch before worrying about his injuries. "Estelle…"
"Quatre!" she scrambled into the cockpit of the Virgo. "Are you hurt? What are you doing here? Are you crazy or something? How could you-" she stopped helping him, frozen in shock. She stared into his pure face. His angelic blue eyes looked back at her calmly, if in pain. He knew what she would say next. "You're- you're a gundam pilot?" she whispered.
"Was," he corrected, then winced in pain.
"Here, let me help you," she pulled away the seat belts and helped him to stand. "Why are you here, Quatre?"
"No time… they'll come soon," he nodded in the direction of sirens already rapidly approaching and flinched.
"Let's get you out of here," she dug in her pocket for a voice command remote and spoke into it. "Forward, three. Reach down, 20. Wait for further." She swore as she saw red trickling down the back of Quatre's shirt. The giant MS moved by itself to reach down 20 or so feet and extend it's hand to them. Estelle helped Quatre to stand then directed the arm to bring them to the cockpit where she quickly got them off the scene.
_________________________________
Quatre woke hours later to the feeling of something cool and damp being gently rubbed across his head. A soothing 'sh' calmed his racing heart and he was able to relax enough to open his eyes.
Estelle smiled down at him in the dingy light. "Glad to see you're awake." She rewet the cloth and finished washing his face of all the dust. "How do you feel?"
"Uh, sore," he said honestly, trying to sit up.
"Don't," she placed a gentle hand on his chest, unknowingly making it beat faster. "I don't know how badly you were injured yet. What were you thinking, Quatre?"
The concern in her eyes made his heart soar, and he swallowed hard to try to suppress the feeling. What was he thinking? He didn't need to think. He would go anywhere for her. He looked around the room for the first time. It was small and badly lit in the back where they were, though a window brightened what could be called a kitchen come living area. He was lying on a rusty metal bedframe softened only by a fairly thick, if hard mattress.
Estelle pushed a wavy wisp of hair behind her ear and into the scarf she had tied over it. "Are you hungry?"
"Uh, no, thanks. Estelle, why did you come here?" he managed to pull himself up a little so he could see her better.
She busied herself putting away the washcloth and bowl of water. "I don't know how much I can tell you… I mean, in a way, you lied to me, Quatre," she turned to face him. Hurt and betrayal was there, but not anger. "You were in that battle- I recognize your voice now."
Quatre could feel anger rising in his voice. "If you want to talk about lying-"
She looked away, avoiding his gaze. "I'm not denying that I lied to you as well."
Good god she was gorgeous standing there in the light from the window next to the sink. So simple and so open and honest. "I forgive you if you can forgive me."
"Done," tears welled a little in her eyes and she quickly wiped them away. "Quatre, you're my best friend. I'm so glad you're here," she strode over and hugged him tightly.
Startled, he hugged her back. Best- friend? "But Estelle, why did you come?" he held her away from him so he could see into her face.
She sat on the bed next to him so they could talk. "It's because of that Markiah guy. He's out to take over the world. We girls had to split up to try to cover all his biggest bases. So I'm here trying to wipe out as much of his military force as I can. It's as simple as that. And please don't be angry with Relena, it's not her fault. She didn't want us to go."
"But- you have so little experience," the worry was written all over his face. "You've lived in that Keep your whole lives- how can you expect to do all this alone?"
"We were trained excellently at 'that Keep'," she replied curtly. "Besides, it's not like you gundam pilots did much before you got the gundams."
That stung. "That's not entirely true. Some of us did fight for years before Operation Meteor."
"Oh yeah? Who? Who are these other 'experienced pilots'?" she asked, then it dawned on her. "Th- those other boys- your friends- are they-?"
"Yes. Trowa, Duo, Wufei, Heero and I were the pilots of the gundams," he said honestly. "And you five girls? You all pilot those- gundame?"
"Lying bastards!" Estelle stood quickly and started to pace. Quatre stared at her, surprised. "All of that and neither side ever knew- ARGH!" she kicked over a chair, venting her frustration. "Heero… he didn't need to train with us, did he? Is he one of those 'experienced pilots'?"
"Yes, he is. So is Trowa. Wufei fought as well. Duo lived on the streets. I lived a pampered life." He hung his head, finally realizing it. "I'm probably the last person to be talking about having experience…"
Estelle closed her eyes and counted slowly to ten. Damn her temper. Damn it to all hell and gone. "Quatre, I'm sorry. I- I- shouldn't have reacted like that. It's just- we could really use your help," she said honestly, startling him into looking up. "It's true. We DON'T know what it's really like to be out here. We could certainly use your help. Are you willing to give it?" there was pleading in her eyes now. She was afraid. In her heart of hearts, she was afraid to do this alone.
"I'll help," he agreed immediately. "I don't know if I can speak for the others, but I will help."
"Thank you," she whispered gratefully.
_________________________________
Love it? Hate it? Lemme know!
-Lady
A Fanfic by Lady Lye
(c)2001
Battle Chapter: Who Can Win The Stars (Part One)
aka Chp 38
Rated for strong language on behalf of the characters. Remember- it's not the author w/ the potty mouth-it's her potty-mouthed characters.
Disclaimer: I do not own the whole GW thing... If I did I sure as h*ll wouldn't be here wasting my time writing fanfics about them- I'd be using them as my you-know-what slaves per my latest obsession. So don't try to sue me- it ain't worth it.
Note: rough translation for my rough use of Spanish can be found at the bottom of the chapter. This will include all previous phrases.
Welcome to the miraculously short BC. I have NO inspiration here. It SUCKS. The idea- get in, get the idea, get out, and go. T_T I hate leaving the middle empty like this… I'll HAVE to go back and fix it… *bitterly sarcastic* Course, no one seems to like Estelle and/or Quatre anyway… (See the website, where there are polls to vote for your fave Femmes!! And their men!!) *sigh* On with it…
________________________________
Gundame: (pronunciation varies between gun-dum-eh and gun-dam-ay, but never gun-dame.) The mobile suits used by the five new girls. They are made of gundanium alloy but are coated with a newly developed substance making their shell even tougher than the gundams. Their pilots are known as the Dames.
_________________________________
Estelle dropped nimbly to the ground and slid into the shadows as a man passed by. She had just HAD to hide her MS in the middle of the city, hadn't she? Well, it WAS about the only place they would never think to look… She made sure he was gone before running up the alleyway to slip behind a pile of junk. Taking out a sturdy, if small, crowbar, she used it to help lever up the heavy metal covering the entryway to her hangar. She dropped the five feet inside, ducked to recover it and made her way in the dark to the hangar itself, right in the middle of the underground network of tunnels below the city. The stench couldn't be helped.
"Time to give the kiss of death to some more of Markiah's Soldiers, eh friend?" She said, flicking a main light switch to reveal her massive gundame. "Let's give 'em hell."
_________________________________
"Mr. Winner, is it true that you're here to discuss buying out Brazillia Connections?"
"How do your sisters feel about this bold move?"
"Mr. Winner, can you explain your strange absence for the last two months?"
"Mr. Winner- Mr. Winner- Mr. Winner-"
Their voices blurred together, making it easier for him to ignore them. Body guards and his financial and PR advisors helped to keep them from totally surrounding him and stopping his progress altogether. Reporters. He hated reporters like these, who looked for the sensational only, not caring what the truth was.
Quatre- Mr. Winner- finally made it to the lobby of the building where his meeting would take place. Yes, he was here to see if Brazillia Connections was worth adding to the Winner's vast business. Yes, his sisters approved- they had been the ones to suggest it. Of course he COULD explain his absence, but why would he? Really, that information was top secret.
"Mr. Winner- Mr. Winner-"
He let his people turn them away while he took the elevator to the ninth floor. He was only here because it was convenient to his real purposes. Such a coincidence that his sister Alexandra had found a company ready for them to acquire located right where he needed to be. And he did need to be here. Impatience was the only word to describe him right now. He wanted out of business suits and office buildings and onto the streets to find Estelle. Lord only knew what was happening to her right now. All those girls… they were so inexperienced and they were being shipped off on missions like this? When he found her he would- he would what? Tell her to give up and go home?
"Ah, Mr. Winner," a short man obviously of the indigenous Indian peoples offered Quatre his hand. "It is excellent to finally do business with you."
He would have to think about that later. "I agree, Mr. Shakal." Quatre forced himself to pay attention as the man began a lengthy and involved multimedia presentation to prove that his firm was worthy of being acquired by the Winners. It was just like any other presentation… never mind. He eventually tuned it out. Afterall, he wouldn't be making the final decision in reality anyway.
A loud explosion rocked the entire building and the presentation abruptly stopped.
"What the hell!?"
"It's a Mobile Suit!"
"It's destroying the foreign military base!"
"It's- It's-" they all stared out the windows in total shock.
"It's a gundam," Quatre whispered, awestruck, before running out of the room.
_________________________________
Mobile suits seemed to pour out of the building almost faster than she could shoot them down. They came at her from all sides, trying to distract her with taunting tricks, but Estelle Brownlow was not to be toyed with. With a yell she aimed straight at the source. "Target Lock- accept your Final Kiss!" The hangar burst into flames and she smiled grimly.
She looked down at her beeping radar. "What the-?!" Something new was heading into the battle zone. It distracted her so much that she nearly didn't see the suit flying straight for her face. "AH!" she quickly got her weapon between her and it and fired. "Shite, that was close…"
"This is Former Gundam Pilot 04, I demand that you state your name and intentions," a voice buzzed through over the comm.
"Gundam Pilot?" Estelle blinked. "I thought they disappeared after the war… You can call me Dame 02, Pilot 04. I'm here to wipe out as much of this base as I can. I suggest you get out of my way." Gundams… predecessor to her precious gundame. She racked her brain for everything Madam Anthony had ever told them. The five young gundam pilots who had fought in the last war were supposed to be the toughest soldiers of their time. But they had disappeared into the stuff of legends, hadn't they? The war had been so very, very long ago… She watched a Virgo come into her field of vision.
"Are you the same suit that fought in Sydney?"
"How would you know that?" she quickly cut down another Capricorn.
"I was there."
So familiar… she knew it sounded familiar… if she could just think who- she prepared to fire again.
"You're Estelle, aren't you?"
Her eyes widened in shock and the cannon's blast missed it's course by a long shot, destroying one of the buildings instead of the latest MS. "Who the hell are you?" she croaked. "Who are you!?" she angrily turned the cannon on him. A fuzzy image began to appear on the comm. She squinted at it. Bl-blonde hair? And blue eyes and- and- "QUATRE!" she screamed as a Scorpio plowed into him from behind. She could hear his yell over the comm., but couldn't bear to watch the pain register on his face as his suit collapsed to the ground. "Quatre! Quatre! You- Damn you, Markiah!" she destroyed every suit in the vicinity, taking the rest of the base down with them. "Quatre-" she couldn't get the gundame to move fast enough and she jumped down from the cockpit, running to his fallen MS. "Quatre!"
"Uhh," he groaned, managing to open the hatch before worrying about his injuries. "Estelle…"
"Quatre!" she scrambled into the cockpit of the Virgo. "Are you hurt? What are you doing here? Are you crazy or something? How could you-" she stopped helping him, frozen in shock. She stared into his pure face. His angelic blue eyes looked back at her calmly, if in pain. He knew what she would say next. "You're- you're a gundam pilot?" she whispered.
"Was," he corrected, then winced in pain.
"Here, let me help you," she pulled away the seat belts and helped him to stand. "Why are you here, Quatre?"
"No time… they'll come soon," he nodded in the direction of sirens already rapidly approaching and flinched.
"Let's get you out of here," she dug in her pocket for a voice command remote and spoke into it. "Forward, three. Reach down, 20. Wait for further." She swore as she saw red trickling down the back of Quatre's shirt. The giant MS moved by itself to reach down 20 or so feet and extend it's hand to them. Estelle helped Quatre to stand then directed the arm to bring them to the cockpit where she quickly got them off the scene.
_________________________________
Quatre woke hours later to the feeling of something cool and damp being gently rubbed across his head. A soothing 'sh' calmed his racing heart and he was able to relax enough to open his eyes.
Estelle smiled down at him in the dingy light. "Glad to see you're awake." She rewet the cloth and finished washing his face of all the dust. "How do you feel?"
"Uh, sore," he said honestly, trying to sit up.
"Don't," she placed a gentle hand on his chest, unknowingly making it beat faster. "I don't know how badly you were injured yet. What were you thinking, Quatre?"
The concern in her eyes made his heart soar, and he swallowed hard to try to suppress the feeling. What was he thinking? He didn't need to think. He would go anywhere for her. He looked around the room for the first time. It was small and badly lit in the back where they were, though a window brightened what could be called a kitchen come living area. He was lying on a rusty metal bedframe softened only by a fairly thick, if hard mattress.
Estelle pushed a wavy wisp of hair behind her ear and into the scarf she had tied over it. "Are you hungry?"
"Uh, no, thanks. Estelle, why did you come here?" he managed to pull himself up a little so he could see her better.
She busied herself putting away the washcloth and bowl of water. "I don't know how much I can tell you… I mean, in a way, you lied to me, Quatre," she turned to face him. Hurt and betrayal was there, but not anger. "You were in that battle- I recognize your voice now."
Quatre could feel anger rising in his voice. "If you want to talk about lying-"
She looked away, avoiding his gaze. "I'm not denying that I lied to you as well."
Good god she was gorgeous standing there in the light from the window next to the sink. So simple and so open and honest. "I forgive you if you can forgive me."
"Done," tears welled a little in her eyes and she quickly wiped them away. "Quatre, you're my best friend. I'm so glad you're here," she strode over and hugged him tightly.
Startled, he hugged her back. Best- friend? "But Estelle, why did you come?" he held her away from him so he could see into her face.
She sat on the bed next to him so they could talk. "It's because of that Markiah guy. He's out to take over the world. We girls had to split up to try to cover all his biggest bases. So I'm here trying to wipe out as much of his military force as I can. It's as simple as that. And please don't be angry with Relena, it's not her fault. She didn't want us to go."
"But- you have so little experience," the worry was written all over his face. "You've lived in that Keep your whole lives- how can you expect to do all this alone?"
"We were trained excellently at 'that Keep'," she replied curtly. "Besides, it's not like you gundam pilots did much before you got the gundams."
That stung. "That's not entirely true. Some of us did fight for years before Operation Meteor."
"Oh yeah? Who? Who are these other 'experienced pilots'?" she asked, then it dawned on her. "Th- those other boys- your friends- are they-?"
"Yes. Trowa, Duo, Wufei, Heero and I were the pilots of the gundams," he said honestly. "And you five girls? You all pilot those- gundame?"
"Lying bastards!" Estelle stood quickly and started to pace. Quatre stared at her, surprised. "All of that and neither side ever knew- ARGH!" she kicked over a chair, venting her frustration. "Heero… he didn't need to train with us, did he? Is he one of those 'experienced pilots'?"
"Yes, he is. So is Trowa. Wufei fought as well. Duo lived on the streets. I lived a pampered life." He hung his head, finally realizing it. "I'm probably the last person to be talking about having experience…"
Estelle closed her eyes and counted slowly to ten. Damn her temper. Damn it to all hell and gone. "Quatre, I'm sorry. I- I- shouldn't have reacted like that. It's just- we could really use your help," she said honestly, startling him into looking up. "It's true. We DON'T know what it's really like to be out here. We could certainly use your help. Are you willing to give it?" there was pleading in her eyes now. She was afraid. In her heart of hearts, she was afraid to do this alone.
"I'll help," he agreed immediately. "I don't know if I can speak for the others, but I will help."
"Thank you," she whispered gratefully.
_________________________________
Love it? Hate it? Lemme know!
-Lady
