1 Bravest Eyes
By Kattie
Chapter Three: The Flowing Tears are Already Withering
Note: Thank you so so so much for reviewing! huggles Sixteen reviews! I didn't think anyone would read this so I'm overwhelmed with joy! I'll try to write longer chapters for you but school can leave one busy. sighs
Disclaimer: Let me give it to ya straight- I don't own Gundam Wing.
After Colony 195: 0834 Hours
Hiiro sat at his keyboard, staring deeply into the computer's screen. There was a constant click of him typing on the keys, moving from one document to the next. Trowa and Wufei sat behind him on the couch, peering over his shoulder from the distance.
"Find anything?" Trowa asked, leaning to see the screen better.
"Only what the media's printed." Hiiro replied, closing another document. "Don't look over my shoulder, it makes me nervous."
"Sorry." The brunette muttered, falling back against the couch.
"What does the media say?" Wufei questioned, continuing to look over his shoulder.
"The basic details. Just the main facts." Hiiro touched a few keys and a document began to print. "Most of this Quatre could have told us."
Duo scampered into the room, jumping onto the couch. "Quatre found some of the notes." He said, excitedly, "There might be fingerprints."
"I doubt it," Hiiro said, coldly, taking the page out of the printer, "His father probably hired the most prestigious officers to investigate and they'd notice any form of DNA, especially fingerprints."
Sliding down on the couch, Duo sighed. "Thanks Hiiro, you always know just what to say."
Throwing Duo a sharp look, Hiiro handed the paper to Trowa. "This is the ship where the trade the for recovery of Quatre was held each year."
In the picture, there was an enormous spaceship that somewhat resembled a deformed mirror. The surface of the ship reflected the space around it, only really visible where the lights were shining. It would be almost undetectable for the eye if it didn't have its name painted on the side.
"The Lost Hunter" it read.
"You mean to tell me this…" Duo searched for the right word, "Monster of a ship was able to hide in space for 12 years? It's huge!"
"It wasn't necessarily in space all that time," Wufei snapped, "It could have easily remained in hiding behind the sun if it's armor was strong enough. We don't know anything about its capabilities so it would be ignorant to jump to conclusions."
Duo eyed Wufei suspiciously for a moment. "Was that some kind of sneaky was of telling me I'm an idiot?"
Raising an eyebrow, Wufei continued to glare. "What do you think?"
Quatre bounded down the stairs with a stack of envelopes in his hand. "Did you find anything?" He asked, stopping by the computer to look over Hiiro's shoulder.
"Only a picture of the ship." Hiiro told him as Trowa handed him the printed photograph.
For a few minutes, Quatre stared at the paper in silence, his eyes wandering over every detail. "It's a lot bigger than I thought." He said quietly, his eyes falling on the name. "But they'd already told me what it was called."
"Are those the ransom notes?" Hiiro asked, eyeing the envelopes.
Quatre handed them to Hiiro, wearing a melancholy expression. "Yes… all of them."
As Hiiro flipped through the letters, Trowa placed a hard stare on Quatre. "Is there a reason you keep them with you?"
Blushing, Quatre shyly nodded, diverting his eyes to the floor. "It's kind of a stupid reason."
"Somehow," Wufei interrupted, taking a letter from Hiiro, "It seems hard to believe that you could do or think anything remotely stupid." Then he looked at Duo. "Unlike Maxwell, whom we've come to expect stupidity from."
Duo put on a wounded puppy-dog face. "Ouch… Wufei, you can be so harsh. Just drive a knife into my frail heart why don't ya?"
"Why do you keep these letters with you?" Trowa asked again, calmly.
"Because," Quatre flushed a crimson shade, "Well… you know my father is always working," He paused as they nodded, "He's always been working for as long as I can remember. So… even though it's never fun being kidnapped… It was the only time my dad would really pay me a second thought," Sighing, he continued, "It's stupid but I guess the letters kind of remind me of when he actually cared about me."
The room when silent as the pilots thought about this. Trowa and Hiiro continued reading the letters while Duo and Wufei merely looked around in the awkward moment.
"That's not stupid," Duo said, breaking the tension, "It makes perfect sense to me."
Quatre looked a bit taken back at this comment but the expression molded into a gratified grin at Duo.
"I think," Said Trowa, not taking his eyes off of the letter, "That if your father was so worried about you when you were in danger, then he must love you a great deal."
Again, Quatre smiled, only this time the smile had a dismal sort of air. "I wish that were true."
"We've spoken with your father," Hiiro said, not allowing another silence, "He seemed genuinely concerned for you."
"Me," Quatre asked quietly, "Or what I am?"
"I'm sure he cares about who you are," Hiiro replied, darkly, "Not what you are."
Sighing, Quatre shook his head. "Never mind… I've burdened you enough with my troubles already."
"Is that blood?" Quatre asked, pointing at a letter near the bottom of Hiiro's stack. There was a large blotch of red on it that had seeped through the letter and the envelope in times past.
"Uh…" Quatre stared at it for a second, "Yes… That's blood. They cut me to prove they were sincere."
"Wouldn't your father know they were serious from the fact that you had scars?" Duo asked, taking the bloodied envelope.
"It was more to scare them," Quatre explained, "A lot of people are afraid of blood."
"I guess that makes sense," Duo replied, taking the paper from within the envelope. His eyes moved from left to right as he read the words printed upon the page. "Jeez!" He exclaimed, throwing it on the table, "They couldn't even be nice in their writing!"
Taking the letter off of the table, Trowa read it aloud.
"My dear lost soul,"
"We are also lost, but not quite so lost as you. From within your custody, a certain person has disappeared, and fallen within our own care. Free from harm as he is now, I regret to inform you that this may only be a temporary condition."
"Perhaps we may both find ourselves in the light of an agreement. Blood is a lovely red, dark and grave, and the young Master Winners' is the most beauteous of all. However, we may be able to restrain ourselves from shedding this wondrous blood if you were to help us find what we need."
"We are hunters, such as those who hunt elk or rabbit, but unlike them, we hunt something far more difficult to catch: wealth. Your son's wealth has once again pulled us towards him and we have taken him with us for this reason. Yet, your fortune proves greater, and so we may perform an exchange."
"We wish for a part of your wealth in the amount of $35 million. Seeing as this is only a small percentage of your amazing fortune, we expect our demands shall be met. If, however, they are not, our ships will be painted an astonishing red with the young Master Winner's blood. It will not be any kind of loss for us, our ship's walls always have seemed boring."
"You are granted the time of one week. Aboard our ship, the "Lost Hunter" the exchange will be made using representatives from each party. We will be docked at Level 2 Colony Cluster for the duration of one day and you will arrive within the 24 hour period."
"If this plan is altered in any way, you already know the consequences, and they shall be carried out. We are quite sure Master Winner will enjoy his time with us, for it is certain we will enjoy our time with him. Screams never cease to be our favorite music."
"Eternally yours, The Lost Hunters."
Ending, Trowa folded the letter and stuffed it back inside of its envelope. Besides the noise of this process being completed, the room was dead silent. It didn't even seem like the pilots were breathing.
"Those people aren't very nice." Duo said, being incredibly observant.
"Really Duo? I hadn't noticed." Hiiro snapped, sarcasm dripping with each word.
"They must take after you." Duo snapped, glaring back at him.
"Are you alright Quatre?" Trowa asked, ignoring the two bickering friends.
"I'm fine," Quatre smiled in response, "I've read those letters a million times."
Trowa looked into his eyes for a moment, as if reading them to make sure he wasn't just saying that so as not to worry them. His gaze fell back on the letters, signifying that Quatre had passed the inspection. "If you're sure."
"I think we've spent enough time on this," Quatre replied, collecting the letters, "It really isn't worth taking our time right now. We should probably look at our next mission."
"They haven't sent us our mission yet," Hiiro said, looking through his e-mail box, "It should come in by tomorrow though."
"Alright," Quatre replied, "Then I guess I'll just clean house. Thanks for helping me with this, but you really shouldn't worry. I doubt they'd try to perform the abduction in the middle of a war." Smiling at them quickly, Quatre walked out of the room.
"Maybe he's right," Wufei told them, watching Quatre leave, "It would be moronic to attempt a hostage situation in the middle of all of this."
"Yeah," Duo agreed, "They'll probably back off this year."
Sighing, Hiiro printed out another document and handed it to Wufei. "I hate to take your last ounce of hope but…" His voice trailed off.
A frown covered Duo's lips as he looked at the page. "0835- Dear Mr. Yuy."
"In response to your letter asking for information about the past kidnapping of my son, Quatre Raberba Winner, I regret to inform you that your notion was incorrect. A few minutes ago we received a letter from the kidnappers. They say they will come for Quatre in a week's time. I suggest you move your base, as they seem to know where you are. I would like to take this time to beg you to protect my son. He is my only son as well as my heir. Please do not let them hurt him again."
"Sincerely, Mr. Winner."
End of Chapter
Note: Well- this chapter is actually about two pages longer than the other chapters- so I hope you understand why it took so long. (That and I had to perform "Oliver!" for drama so I was quite busy). The chapters may end up being longer from now on so I appreciate your patience.
You may have noticed that I used sarcasm in the line "Those people aren't very nice." Duo said, being incredibly observant. I did not actually mean that Duo was observant, and I'm very sorry if I confused anyone.
Also, you may have noticed I spelled "favorite" the American way do to the fact I live in the United States. If you are British and prefer the spelling "favourite" I am sincerely sorry and hope you can forgive me. huggles all you British people with the super cute accents
If you know how to spell Quatre's middle name I would appreciate it if you'd e-mail me (Kattie41@aol.com) or IM me (Kattie41) on AIM to tell me. I should know I'm just being a stupid girl and forgetting ^^* Forgive me again?
The last thing I must tell you is that I did have Quatre's father sign the note "Mr. Winner". This is because I have no clue what his first name is. If you know PLEASE tell me and I'll love you forever! (Not that I don't now)
Thank you thank you thank you for your patience! Flame me if I've made any typos or grammar/spelling errors! I love you all and may you have a LOVELY day!
By Kattie
Chapter Three: The Flowing Tears are Already Withering
Note: Thank you so so so much for reviewing! huggles Sixteen reviews! I didn't think anyone would read this so I'm overwhelmed with joy! I'll try to write longer chapters for you but school can leave one busy. sighs
Disclaimer: Let me give it to ya straight- I don't own Gundam Wing.
After Colony 195: 0834 Hours
Hiiro sat at his keyboard, staring deeply into the computer's screen. There was a constant click of him typing on the keys, moving from one document to the next. Trowa and Wufei sat behind him on the couch, peering over his shoulder from the distance.
"Find anything?" Trowa asked, leaning to see the screen better.
"Only what the media's printed." Hiiro replied, closing another document. "Don't look over my shoulder, it makes me nervous."
"Sorry." The brunette muttered, falling back against the couch.
"What does the media say?" Wufei questioned, continuing to look over his shoulder.
"The basic details. Just the main facts." Hiiro touched a few keys and a document began to print. "Most of this Quatre could have told us."
Duo scampered into the room, jumping onto the couch. "Quatre found some of the notes." He said, excitedly, "There might be fingerprints."
"I doubt it," Hiiro said, coldly, taking the page out of the printer, "His father probably hired the most prestigious officers to investigate and they'd notice any form of DNA, especially fingerprints."
Sliding down on the couch, Duo sighed. "Thanks Hiiro, you always know just what to say."
Throwing Duo a sharp look, Hiiro handed the paper to Trowa. "This is the ship where the trade the for recovery of Quatre was held each year."
In the picture, there was an enormous spaceship that somewhat resembled a deformed mirror. The surface of the ship reflected the space around it, only really visible where the lights were shining. It would be almost undetectable for the eye if it didn't have its name painted on the side.
"The Lost Hunter" it read.
"You mean to tell me this…" Duo searched for the right word, "Monster of a ship was able to hide in space for 12 years? It's huge!"
"It wasn't necessarily in space all that time," Wufei snapped, "It could have easily remained in hiding behind the sun if it's armor was strong enough. We don't know anything about its capabilities so it would be ignorant to jump to conclusions."
Duo eyed Wufei suspiciously for a moment. "Was that some kind of sneaky was of telling me I'm an idiot?"
Raising an eyebrow, Wufei continued to glare. "What do you think?"
Quatre bounded down the stairs with a stack of envelopes in his hand. "Did you find anything?" He asked, stopping by the computer to look over Hiiro's shoulder.
"Only a picture of the ship." Hiiro told him as Trowa handed him the printed photograph.
For a few minutes, Quatre stared at the paper in silence, his eyes wandering over every detail. "It's a lot bigger than I thought." He said quietly, his eyes falling on the name. "But they'd already told me what it was called."
"Are those the ransom notes?" Hiiro asked, eyeing the envelopes.
Quatre handed them to Hiiro, wearing a melancholy expression. "Yes… all of them."
As Hiiro flipped through the letters, Trowa placed a hard stare on Quatre. "Is there a reason you keep them with you?"
Blushing, Quatre shyly nodded, diverting his eyes to the floor. "It's kind of a stupid reason."
"Somehow," Wufei interrupted, taking a letter from Hiiro, "It seems hard to believe that you could do or think anything remotely stupid." Then he looked at Duo. "Unlike Maxwell, whom we've come to expect stupidity from."
Duo put on a wounded puppy-dog face. "Ouch… Wufei, you can be so harsh. Just drive a knife into my frail heart why don't ya?"
"Why do you keep these letters with you?" Trowa asked again, calmly.
"Because," Quatre flushed a crimson shade, "Well… you know my father is always working," He paused as they nodded, "He's always been working for as long as I can remember. So… even though it's never fun being kidnapped… It was the only time my dad would really pay me a second thought," Sighing, he continued, "It's stupid but I guess the letters kind of remind me of when he actually cared about me."
The room when silent as the pilots thought about this. Trowa and Hiiro continued reading the letters while Duo and Wufei merely looked around in the awkward moment.
"That's not stupid," Duo said, breaking the tension, "It makes perfect sense to me."
Quatre looked a bit taken back at this comment but the expression molded into a gratified grin at Duo.
"I think," Said Trowa, not taking his eyes off of the letter, "That if your father was so worried about you when you were in danger, then he must love you a great deal."
Again, Quatre smiled, only this time the smile had a dismal sort of air. "I wish that were true."
"We've spoken with your father," Hiiro said, not allowing another silence, "He seemed genuinely concerned for you."
"Me," Quatre asked quietly, "Or what I am?"
"I'm sure he cares about who you are," Hiiro replied, darkly, "Not what you are."
Sighing, Quatre shook his head. "Never mind… I've burdened you enough with my troubles already."
"Is that blood?" Quatre asked, pointing at a letter near the bottom of Hiiro's stack. There was a large blotch of red on it that had seeped through the letter and the envelope in times past.
"Uh…" Quatre stared at it for a second, "Yes… That's blood. They cut me to prove they were sincere."
"Wouldn't your father know they were serious from the fact that you had scars?" Duo asked, taking the bloodied envelope.
"It was more to scare them," Quatre explained, "A lot of people are afraid of blood."
"I guess that makes sense," Duo replied, taking the paper from within the envelope. His eyes moved from left to right as he read the words printed upon the page. "Jeez!" He exclaimed, throwing it on the table, "They couldn't even be nice in their writing!"
Taking the letter off of the table, Trowa read it aloud.
"My dear lost soul,"
"We are also lost, but not quite so lost as you. From within your custody, a certain person has disappeared, and fallen within our own care. Free from harm as he is now, I regret to inform you that this may only be a temporary condition."
"Perhaps we may both find ourselves in the light of an agreement. Blood is a lovely red, dark and grave, and the young Master Winners' is the most beauteous of all. However, we may be able to restrain ourselves from shedding this wondrous blood if you were to help us find what we need."
"We are hunters, such as those who hunt elk or rabbit, but unlike them, we hunt something far more difficult to catch: wealth. Your son's wealth has once again pulled us towards him and we have taken him with us for this reason. Yet, your fortune proves greater, and so we may perform an exchange."
"We wish for a part of your wealth in the amount of $35 million. Seeing as this is only a small percentage of your amazing fortune, we expect our demands shall be met. If, however, they are not, our ships will be painted an astonishing red with the young Master Winner's blood. It will not be any kind of loss for us, our ship's walls always have seemed boring."
"You are granted the time of one week. Aboard our ship, the "Lost Hunter" the exchange will be made using representatives from each party. We will be docked at Level 2 Colony Cluster for the duration of one day and you will arrive within the 24 hour period."
"If this plan is altered in any way, you already know the consequences, and they shall be carried out. We are quite sure Master Winner will enjoy his time with us, for it is certain we will enjoy our time with him. Screams never cease to be our favorite music."
"Eternally yours, The Lost Hunters."
Ending, Trowa folded the letter and stuffed it back inside of its envelope. Besides the noise of this process being completed, the room was dead silent. It didn't even seem like the pilots were breathing.
"Those people aren't very nice." Duo said, being incredibly observant.
"Really Duo? I hadn't noticed." Hiiro snapped, sarcasm dripping with each word.
"They must take after you." Duo snapped, glaring back at him.
"Are you alright Quatre?" Trowa asked, ignoring the two bickering friends.
"I'm fine," Quatre smiled in response, "I've read those letters a million times."
Trowa looked into his eyes for a moment, as if reading them to make sure he wasn't just saying that so as not to worry them. His gaze fell back on the letters, signifying that Quatre had passed the inspection. "If you're sure."
"I think we've spent enough time on this," Quatre replied, collecting the letters, "It really isn't worth taking our time right now. We should probably look at our next mission."
"They haven't sent us our mission yet," Hiiro said, looking through his e-mail box, "It should come in by tomorrow though."
"Alright," Quatre replied, "Then I guess I'll just clean house. Thanks for helping me with this, but you really shouldn't worry. I doubt they'd try to perform the abduction in the middle of a war." Smiling at them quickly, Quatre walked out of the room.
"Maybe he's right," Wufei told them, watching Quatre leave, "It would be moronic to attempt a hostage situation in the middle of all of this."
"Yeah," Duo agreed, "They'll probably back off this year."
Sighing, Hiiro printed out another document and handed it to Wufei. "I hate to take your last ounce of hope but…" His voice trailed off.
A frown covered Duo's lips as he looked at the page. "0835- Dear Mr. Yuy."
"In response to your letter asking for information about the past kidnapping of my son, Quatre Raberba Winner, I regret to inform you that your notion was incorrect. A few minutes ago we received a letter from the kidnappers. They say they will come for Quatre in a week's time. I suggest you move your base, as they seem to know where you are. I would like to take this time to beg you to protect my son. He is my only son as well as my heir. Please do not let them hurt him again."
"Sincerely, Mr. Winner."
End of Chapter
Note: Well- this chapter is actually about two pages longer than the other chapters- so I hope you understand why it took so long. (That and I had to perform "Oliver!" for drama so I was quite busy). The chapters may end up being longer from now on so I appreciate your patience.
You may have noticed that I used sarcasm in the line "Those people aren't very nice." Duo said, being incredibly observant. I did not actually mean that Duo was observant, and I'm very sorry if I confused anyone.
Also, you may have noticed I spelled "favorite" the American way do to the fact I live in the United States. If you are British and prefer the spelling "favourite" I am sincerely sorry and hope you can forgive me. huggles all you British people with the super cute accents
If you know how to spell Quatre's middle name I would appreciate it if you'd e-mail me (Kattie41@aol.com) or IM me (Kattie41) on AIM to tell me. I should know I'm just being a stupid girl and forgetting ^^* Forgive me again?
The last thing I must tell you is that I did have Quatre's father sign the note "Mr. Winner". This is because I have no clue what his first name is. If you know PLEASE tell me and I'll love you forever! (Not that I don't now)
Thank you thank you thank you for your patience! Flame me if I've made any typos or grammar/spelling errors! I love you all and may you have a LOVELY day!