Disclaimers: I don't own anything except for any OC's… such as Cassandra, so there. Don't sue me, you'll only get a very messy picture of Duo that I ABSOLUTELY adore so, don't bother. Thank you all you good people for letting me work with you're Characters, even though you may not know, and it's not like I'm selling em…o.k, on with this…ah…prologue…^.^
AN: Wow, I'm getting addicted, this if fun stuff!! ^.^ Now I know WHY people use their time to write this stuff!! Good past time!!! Although reading other fics is good too…I can't choose!!! @.@
~*~*~*~* Denotes flashbacks
'Blah blah' denotes thoughts…you know…

Lost, Found, And Lost Once More
Part 3: Remembering Duo



Lady Une slid the key card into the slot and keyed in the password to open the door. It slid open with a quiet swish, revealing a nice room with light blue walls. Cassandra didn't move.

"Please enter your room Lady Cassandra, I'll have Tríona bring you your dinner."

"I'm not hungry."

"I'm afraid you must eat Lady, or Mr. Treize will be very angry."

"He already is."

"Please Lady Cassandra." Lady Une gestured into the room. With a sigh, Cassandra walked in.

"You may change since Mr. Treize says you will not leave the room for the time being, so you do not need to be in your uniform. Your dinner will be here shortly." Lady Une nodded and exited.

Cassandra listened as Lady Une summoned two guards to stand by, and locked the door. Entering the walk-in closet, she changed from her OZ clothing to a pair of navy sweatpants and an orange shirt. She washed her face and took down her hair, pulling it back into a single braid. Looking at herself in the mirror, she saw the image of Duo, and slammed her fists on the marble counter before taking her hair out and putting it into a simple ponytail.

She re-entered her room and once again surveyed it with a sigh. It consisted of a queen-sized bed with a navy blanket and light blue drapes, in the middle of the room. A shelf of books by a reclining chair and standup light for reading, a T.V with a sofa and coffee table, a desk and a computer, as well as another table in a corner where Cassandra usually ate. Connected to the room was a walk in closet and a bathroom. In the base, as it was underground, there were no windows. Cassandra sighed again, sitting down on the bed. She wanted to be in the sun, not underground all the time. Maybe she could convince Treize to let her keep going to WCS. She looked up when the door opened again. A girl with light brown hair entered. She was wearing a simple green dress with an apron from her waist. Her name was Tríona, and she was the servant of Cassandra, even though she was only 17 herself.

"Miss, here is your dinner." Tríona said as she entered with a large tray. The poor girl seemed hardly able to hold up the heavy load, and Cassandra quickly made her way forward.

"Let me help you Tríona." She said, taking away the rose that was always in a single heavy vase that was on the tray. Then, she took the heavy plate of food from the tray, and walked with Tríona along the length of the room to the table.

"Thank you Miss." Tríona whispered.

"No problem." 'Why does Father insist on that rose and that vase?'

Cassandra put the plate on the table, and Tríona put down the tray she was holding, then retrieved the vase and rose from where Cassandra left it on the ground. She poured some orange juice into the glass, and opened the cover on the meal to reveal chicken, carrots and peas, and some spaghetti with cream sauce. Pulling back the chair, she nodded to Cassandra, and Cassandra took her seat, pulling out the napkin and covering her lap. Tríona stood to the side to wait for Cassandra to finish her meal, and Cassandra was just about to pick up her fork when the door swished open.

"How nice of you to join me Lady Une." Cassandra said without looking up and taking a bite.

"How is the food Lady Cassandra?" Lady Une politely asked.

"Good, but there is really too much. Next time, ask the cook to give less, it lessens the load on Tríona too."

Lady Une flashed a look at Tríona, who shrank back.

"Don't look at her like that Lady Une, Tríona wasn't complaining." Cassandra said. "Really Lady, why must the meal be so formal when I am eating alone?"

"Mr. Treize would like your manners to be proper for when you eat with him."

"I hardly do."

"But your skills must be kept polished. Please uncross your legs and sit up."

Cassandra complied, rolling her eyes. "I'm alone Lady Une."

"It doesn't matter."

"How is the interrogation going?"

"That isn't your concern Lady Cassandra."

Cassandra turned to look at Lady Une, eyes flashing blue fire. "I will ask when I believe it is my concern. I led the capturing of those two people, and I have a right to know. Now please answer me."

"I'm afraid Mr. Treize does not allow me to Lady Cassandra, please understand."

Cassandra sighed, turning back to her dinner. She ate the rest of it in silence, and drank her juice. When she was done, Tríona moved forward to clear up the dishes. Lady Une stopped her and turned to Cassandra, who was choosing a book from the shelf.

"Lady Cassandra, you have only eaten half of this meal." She said quietly.

"I know Lady Une. I said I'm not hungry. Please Tríona, take it away."

"Yes Miss." Tríona gathered everything and exited the room.

"If you don't mind Lady, I'd like some time alone now." Cassandra said, sitting down in the reclining chair with her book, White Fang.

"Yes, Lady Cassandra." Lady Une nodded, and then exited the room.

Cassandra tried to read, but found her thoughts drifting to the past. Without knowing herself, she slipped into slumber.

Dreams that she had tried for a long time to avoid rushed at her. As a third person, Cassandra relived what her younger self had been through. She saw herself, timid, scared, dirty and hungry on the streets of L2, when Duo had first swung by.



~*~*~*~*



"Hey you there, who are you? Never seen you on the streets." 7-year-old Duo asked, stopping in front of a girl who was sitting on the street, her head resting on top of her folded arms that were resting on top of her knees. She looked up.

"They killed my parents." The little girl whispered. "I'm all alone."

Duo whistled before plopping down next to the girl on the pavement. "I'm Duo. I run and hide, but I never lie, that's me in a nutshell. That's tough. I'm alone too. Don't remember em. But they gave me this." Duo pulled out a necklace that had two parts to it. Fit together with a clasp, made the symbol of a circle with a star in the middle, one part being the star, the other the empty circle.

"I'm…" The little girl trailed off.

"Well?"

"I don't remember." The girl whispered. She turned to Duo. "Who am I?"

"I don't know. Well, do you remember anything?"

The girl thought for a while. "I just had my 5th birthday party…I live in a house that is gray with a black roof."

"That big mansion?"

"It was a big house."

"Man…" Duo said. "That house was burned about a week ago. Where've you been?" Only then did Duo notice that the girl was injured, blood trickling from her head, and her arm at an odd angle. "You look pretty beat."

"I…" The girl trailed off, looking straight at Duo. "I don't remember. Who am I?" She whispered. Her voice grew louder. "I don't know who I am!"



~*~*~*~*



Cassandra snapped awake, panting. She sat up in the reclining chair, glancing at the clock. 2100. She had been sleeping for an hour. She lowered her head into her hands, shaking her head slightly. 'Why are you haunting me now? You let go 5 years ago, why not now?' She stood, making her way to her shelf. In the back, behind a few other books, was another, hidden book. It was a hollow book. To anyone else, it was a book. To her, it held all of her treasures. One by one, Cassandra took out her possessions. A cross from Maxwell Church, the one identical to Duo's that she had gotten from Father Maxwell and Sister Helen when she and Duo entered the Church and Orphanage, and changed their name to Maxwell. There was a D engraved on the back of the cross, right in the center, just a tiny D. Duo had done that himself, with a small knife, shortly after they had gotten it. There was a picture of Duo and her from a newspaper when someone from L1 had sponsored a bit of money to the church. It was the exact same picture Duo had in his Gundam, not that Cassandra knew. Duo's was the original, hers was a newspaper clipping. And last of all, was the star from Duo's only family possession. She gripped it tight in her hand, even though the points of the star cut into her skin slightly.


'Gomen ne Duo… Gomen ne.'







Saori: About that White Fang book....I'm sorry, it's my favorite book, and only when my beta-reader Jet started laughing about it did I realize what pun I made...well...
Duo: Hahahahahaha!!!
Jet: *Yanks on Duo's braid* Shut up Maxwell or that braid is coming off. It's OVER so STOP LAUGHING
Duo: AH!! NO!! SORRY!!! *shuts up*
Saori: *sweatdropz*and the last part..."Gomen ne Duo...Gomen ne." Means "I'm sorry Duo...I'm sorry."