xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Is This Called Destiny?
Chapter Two
Disclaimers: I don't own Sailor Moon or Gundam Wing.
Author's Notes: I was looking back at Chapter One and I realized I forgot the question mark after the title 'Is This Called Destiny?'. AND the chapter wasn't quite as long on the actual fanfiction.net. So, I will try to make this LONGER. Maybe about ten pages, maybe eight. Who knows? But definitely longer than five. (I'm very pleased with all the reviews I got before it was even up a day ^.^)
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Fate pulled back from the loom in front of her, beads of sweat on her forehead. The threads on the loom were rapidly reweaving themselves. Changing that girl's destiny had been harder than she thought. Her mind was still trying to comprehend the silver flashes of light that she herself had witnessed. What happened during those times was still a mystery to her.
"Fate..." a soft, deadly voice whispered from the doorway, a figure stepped into the dimly lit room.
"Destiny!" Fate whirled around, her eyes wide with shock, "You...you saw..."
"You know that was forbidden, Fate." Destiny said coldly, her emerald green eyes flashed dangerously, "Or need I remind you that it is our job to make sure people fulfill their destiny?"
"Hai." Fate said softly, "Demo, there's no more chance for her to be with this Mamoru person in this life is there? I mean, he's dead. There's no harm in giving her a chance..."
"Is that what you really think, Fate?" Destiny questioned cruelly, moving towards Fate, "Do you really think that people like us are permitted to give mere mortals chances? When those very chances could become a reality? Is that what you really think?"
"I..." Fate looked down ashamed, "I didn't realize..."
"Of course you didn't." Destiny continued, "Why else would you do something as foolish? You do realize that despite all your attempts, she will commit suicide again?"
"Have you been so blinded that you did not realize what this life means? This is her last life, Fate. Her final life." Destiny snapped, "Her final judgement. She is one of us, Fate! You should know what seat she shall take, there are only six left, and five of them are seats created for the opposite sex."
"Gomen nasai. Demo, I made a promise and that alone is sacred." Fate whispered.
"Hai, Fate, you have made a fatal mistake that day, a mistake that will change the course of time. But it can still be altered." Destiny moved towards the loom, "Come here, you see this thread here? This black one I have just inserted?"
Fate's sapphire blue eyes widened with horror as a sticky, black thread inserted itself somewhere in the girl's future. Nothing could tell what that thread held except that it held horrors not meant for everyday lives.
"This thread will change everything. It is the final judgment to see if their love is truly meant to be." Destiny snapped, and left the room abruptly.
'What have I done?' Fate collapsed on the floor, staring up at the loom, 'What have I done?'
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Duo woke up, his hand already on the gun he always kept under his pillow. He was trapped in some sort of grip, a distant part of him wondered how Oz had gotten through all of Quatre's security devices. He shifted slightly, a tighter grip and a small whimper was his response. His violet eyes filled with surprise, he had been expecting something along the lines of, 'Make another move and we'll blow your brains out.' He thought back to the night before, Usagi had come, she had fallen asleep when she had finished talking, he had placed her in his bed... Duo's eyes widened in realization and after nearly twisting his neck, he glimpsed Usagi, holding him in a perfect death grip.
He tried to move, and the small whimper that had come before grew slightly louder. Her only source of warmth was trying to get away and she wouldn't allow it. Duo sighed before gently removing her arms from around his waist. Another small whimper and before he knew it, she had pulled him back down and thrown her leg over his body, effectively locking him into place. He groaned, how could he forget? Usagi was VERY persistent.
"Usagi!" he whispered urgently in her ear.
"Iie, Shingo-no-baka." Usagi murmured softly, "I didn't sneak out last night. Now go away, I can still catch a couple more minutes of sleep."
Duo frowned, didn't she forget everything about her past? He raised his voice slightly and spoke her name again, louder than before. She whimpered and tightened her grip on him.
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Usagi shivered, everywhere she walked, there was the same thick, gray fog. A small movement caught her eye and she whirled around. A ghostly figure was walking towards an unknown destination. From this distance, all she could make out was a girl, with long black hair, dressed in priestess robes.
"Excuse me!" she called, her voice echoed through the emptiness.
The figure disappeared into the dense fog. Usagi rushed over to the spot where she had disappeared and all she saw was the fog, swirling around her. She saw another figure, this time, it was a girl, with short blue hair, carrying a thick book. Usagi tried to attract her attention but this figure also disappeared into the fog.
Usagi whimpered, she had an uneasy feeling about this place. Everywhere she turned, ghostly figures were walking around, ignorant of her. Then, just as suddenly, they all turned into smoke and disappeared. Usagi gulped and paled as voices started echoing across the canyon.
The voices were all calling her name. She was sure that they were all addressing her. Usagi looked wildly around her, trying to spot whoever was calling her. There was no one in sight, yet the voices continued to call her. She turned around and ran, trying to escape the echo of voices.
It seemed like she ran forever, when she slammed into a wall. She started walking quickly along the wall, her hand on it the whole time, feeling for a door, a window, anything that would lead her out of this place. Soon, she bumped into another wall.
The voices were getting closer and closer. She whimpered as the ghostly figures appeared again. All of them were calling her by a different name. They surrounded her, and she pressed herself into the corner, where the two walls met, trying to get away from them.
"Go away!" she pleaded, knowing she sounded pitiful, "Get away from me!"
The figures continued to close in on her, ignorant to her pleas. She was an ashy color now, her face paling with each step they took towards her.
"GO AWAY!!!" she shrieked and an unseen wind whipped around her, the figures turned into piles of ash that the wind soon blew away.
Usagi clung to the wall for support, she was trembling uncontrollably. Not because of the figures anymore, but because there seemed to be no way out of this place. She was trapped. Her breaths came in ragged gasps, as far back as she could remember, she had been claustrophobic. The area she was confined to wasn't very small, but it was definitely enclosed with no way out.
"Duo." she whispered softly, if she couldn't get out of this place, she'd never see him again.
"Usa-chan!!!!!" a voice echoed through the area, bouncing of the wall.
Usagi looked up sharply, she could recognize that voice anywhere, it was Duo...but where was he? The fog began to disappear and Usagi saw a glimmer of light, she looked all around her, she saw the light clearly enough, but she couldn't find its source. The fog completely disappeared and the brilliant light filled the area.
"Arigato, Duo-chan." she breathed softly and collapsed against the wall, "Arigato."
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Usagi's eyes flew open, she was back in Duo's room. She turned immediately and found herself staring into his deep violet eyes. They were currently filled with concern.
"D-chan, what's wrong?" Usagi questioned looking up at him.
"Nothing." Duo said quickly, deciding to question her about this Shingo person later, "But, could you please release me?"
"Nande?" Usagi's eyes filled with surprise, before she realized that she was hugging him tightly, "Gomen nasai."
She blushed furiously and released him quickly. He got up and stretched, meanwhile, Usagi took the time to study her surroundings. Everywhere she looked, she saw pictures of a...Gundam?
'Baka.' She reprimanded herself, 'They're selling posters of the Gundams everywhere. Why shouldn't he have some?'
"You're a big fan of Deathscythe, D-chan? You never told me that." she glanced at Duo who was checking his mail.
"Guess it slipped my mind, Usa." Duo answered, typing on his laptop with one hand.
Usagi got up and peered over his shoulder and read the mail as he deleted them, she read them aloud, "Kisama, Maxwell, Injustice, Maxwell, My name is Wufei, not Wu-man..." she continued for awhile, "I take it you still play lots of pranks on Wufei?"
"Why would I change, Usa? I consider it a very healthy hobby. I get lots of exercise. " Duo looked at her.
"Well...you did change your eating habits after I left. Wufei said so." she said slowly.
"You heard?" Duo cringed, had she heard about the mission too?
"Hai, but I was really tired so I didn't comment about it. I fell asleep after he said it though." Usagi murmured, 'He's hiding something. I shouldn't pry, he'll tell me in time if it's really important.'
"Oh." Duo let out the breath he had been holding, "Did you hear anything else?"
"Iie. I don't remember hearing anything else." Usagi chewed her lip, "Was I supposed to?"
"You didn't miss anything important, Quatre was just saying that he needed to get some supplies with the others so I have to show you around the house." Duo said hurriedly, "I think that was a bad choice though." he added as an afterthought, "I don't really know my way around the house. I can only get from my room...to the kitchen."
"Well, don't you have a map or something?" Usagi glanced at the rest of his so-called desk, it was covered with paper.
"Now that I think about it, I think he gave me a map when we got here..." Duo began to search through the piles of paper, "...I'm not sure where I put it though."
Usagi sighed softly, she began to help Duo search through the mountains of paper. A half hour later, they had gone through about three-quarters of the desk.
"I found it!" Duo yelled triumphantly, pulling a packet of paper out of the piles.
Usagi glanced at it and recognized Quatre's neat, precise handwriting. She began to flip through it, her eyes skimming over each page...until she came across something out of ordinary.
"Duo, why does Quatre-sama have a storage area? It looks like it's pretty big." she looked up at Duo.
"A storage area?" Duo took the map from her, "Oh, THAT storage area, well you see Quatre's dad needed to get a bunch of computer software for his company. He needed a lot, well, that was before he got...killed." Duo handed the map back to Usagi, "Now, it's hardly used except to store lots of food, mainly for me."
"Demo, you aren't eating, remember?" Usagi continued to look at him, 'This has something to do with what he's hiding! I just know it.'
"Well, in all the other mansions we were in. You know, before I met you." Duo fidgeted uncomfortably under her stare, "Do you want to eat something before I show you around?"
"Sure, I didn't know you could cook." Usagi gave the map to him and started walking out the door.
"Well, unless you know how, we could always eat something instant." Duo said, following her out, "Or we could eat out."
"I'll cook something." Usagi said quickly, "Where's the kitchen?"
Twenty minutes later, Usagi pushed Duo into a chair to prevent him from ruining the breakfast anymore. His so-called 'help' ended up ruining the eggs, burning the bread, and spilling the orange juice.
"I said I was sorry, Usa-chan!" Duo protested as he sulked in his chair.
"Hai, I know you are, but you really need some cooking lessons. And you don't exactly want to eat nothing for breakfast do you?" Usagi's back was faced to him as she tended the stove.
Duo grumbled something about eating a snack instead, but Usagi pointedly ignored him. A few minutes later, she set a plate in front of him and began to eat. Duo sampled the food in front of him before shoveling it into his mouth as usual. Needless to say, he finished just a few moments later.
"I'm done, Usa, ready to take a tour of the mansion?" Duo got up.
"Just a sec." Usagi answered, not bothering to look up at him.
"One." Duo counted, when he looked at her a split second later, she was standing up.
He blinked sharply, it was still there, a sparkling clean plate, Usagi smirked slightly.
"You blinked, didn't you?" she teased as she walked out the door.
Duo muttered about paying more attention the next time she did something like that. Usagi giggled softly at his antics, she had missed him so much after her vacation.
"Where do we start?" she called back, stopping so he could catch up.
"How about the basement?" Duo answered, taking the time to study the map in front of him, "It's that way." he pointed to the right of them.
Two hours later, Usagi stopped in front of another room. Duo opened the door and when she looked inside, she saw cardboard boxes stacked up, one on top of the other, all around the room.
"I take it, this is the storage room?" Usagi asked, stepping inside.
"Yeah, that's all of Quatre's emergency equipment, it includes stuff like food and can openers. Just in case there's like a blizzard or something." Duo said quickly, ushering her out, "Next is one of my favorite rooms, if I can find it. The arcade."
An hour later, Usagi sighed in relief, the tour was finally over. Quatre's sixteen floor mansion had finally been completely covered.
"I should get going, Duo." Usagi said, looking out onto the snow-covered lawn, "I need to get back to my apartment."
"But we still have a lot of catching up to do." Duo protested, he tried to think of a better excuse to get her to stay.
Usagi rolled her eyes and turned to look at him, "It's not like I can stay here forever, Duo."
"Well, actually, that could be easily arranged." a voice said from the doorway of Duo's room.
Usagi shrieked and whirled around to find herself staring into Quatre's light blue eyes.
She glared at him, "Not funny. You nearly gave me a premature heart attack!"
"Gomen nasai, I didn't mean to scare you." Quatre apologized.
"What's this about the onna staying here forever?!" Wufei glared at her.
"Well, I have plenty of spare rooms, all Usagi really had to do is move all her stuff here." Quatre said quite reasonably.
"Injustice! I refuse to live in the same house as this...this...weak onna!!!" Wufei sputtered angrily.
"Keep that up, and I'll move in just to annoy you." Usagi snapped, "Although, moving in isn't such a bad idea." she murmured thoughtfully, "Driving here all the time would make my gas bill go up by a lot."
"Really, Q-man? You'll let Usagi live here too?" Duo asked curiously.
"I don't really mind and as I said before, there are plenty of rooms in the house." Quatre stated.
"I won't mind living here, as long as none of you enter my room without knocking." Usagi murmured.
"Then it's settled!" Duo said cheerfully, "Usagi'll move in as soon as they clear up the roads!"
"Nande?!?! INJUSTICE!!! Winner, you're letting this weak onna LIVE in this mansion!!!!" Wufei roared.
Usagi's eyes turned an icy shade of blue and she snatched the gun that was under Duo's pillow. Turning to face Wufei, she clicked off the safety and aimed it directly between his eyes.
"I warned you..." she said coldly, walking forward slowly.
Hiiro's eyes widened slightly from the shadows, outside of Duo's room. He had arrived there seconds after he heard the safety of someone's gun going off. His mind instantly replaced Usagi with a girl, around ten, holding a gun the same exact way. Her hair was pulled into two silver odangos and her eyes had turned an icy blue, quite the opposite of her usually warm, silvery-blue eyes.
The figure flickered and was replaced again with Usagi, her hair was in its usual pony-tail that reached her feet. Hiiro stepped out of the shadows, his own gun drawn, the safety already off. The girl he knew was completely unpredictable, even without her memories, Usagi could still be deadly.
Usagi's eyes settled on him, they were cold and emotionless. Wufei moved out of the way of the gun, but the gun moved with him, always centering itself between his eyes. Duo gulped as Hiiro aimed his gun at her carefully.
"Usa-chan..." Duo said softly, he moved forward and placed himself between Wufei and Usagi, "You don't really want to kill Wu-man do you?"
Usagi's hand shook slightly and she looked down, "Gomen nasai, I guess I let my temper get the better of me." she murmured softly, lowering the gun.
Wufei darted out the door and her head snapped up sharply, her body stiffened visibly before relaxing. Hiiro slowly withdrew his gun and left as well. The only ones left were Trowa and Quatre, who was pale with fright. Trowa left after Hiiro but Quatre remained there.
"She can still stay here, can't she, Quatre?" Duo looked at him hopefully.
"H..h..hai." Quatre stuttered before making a quick exit.
Duo turned back to Usagi who was still holding the gun as if her life depended on it. He moved toward her and took it out of her grip, her eyes were still filled with fright.
"That felt so...familiar..." she whispered softly, "Like I've held a gun all my life..."
**Flashback**
A young girl stood seven feet away from a target. Her sapphire blue eyes were cold and emotionless as she clicked the safety off of the gun in her hands. She had been given permission to tack a picture on the otherwise faceless cardboard person. She aimed and fired. Shooting right between the eyes of the person tacked onto the target.
"Well done, not bad at all for your first time using a gun." a voice said from the shadows.
"Hnn." was the only answer the girl gave him, she dropped the gun and walked away.
An old, somewhat grizzled man stepped out of the shadows and moved in closer to the target. He stopped in momentary shock when he recognized the picture tacked on there. It was himself...
**End Flashback**
Usagi staggered back, clutching her head, "Iie..." she whispered, "I don't kill people for fun..." she was near tears now, "I don't kill people..."
Duo caught her as she began to fall. He gently deposited her on his bed, she was asleep again, or in shock. He checked her pulse, it was normal, everything was normal. She must have been completely exhausted after that tour, but she hadn't wanted to worry him.
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
She was here again... The dense, gray fog was back. Usagi looked around herself, empty, all she could feel was emptiness. No emotions, just a cold, dark feeling. It reminded her so much of Hiiro. Always cold and detached to everything, unemotional. She shivered, the air had suddenly dropped a few degrees.
Usagi tripped over something, she bent down to examine it but recoiled with fright. It was a gun, black and shining, shining with a deadly light. Filled with evil. Duo owned one, for protection, she had supposed. Or was it something else? The same thing he was hiding from her.
She paled, ghostly figures were walking around her again. The same grizzled old man she had seen before she had collapsed. A small story unfolded before her. A young boy, hardly older than three, being beaten, shunned, and deprived of all love, turning into a cold-hearted warrior with no feelings. It was amazing what love could do...except she recognized this cold warrior. It was...Hiiro.
'This is why he's so emotionless. That's why he pushes everyone away...' she pulled back from the scene, lost in her own thoughts, 'Inside, he's just a little boy, or is he really that unreachable?' she decided to choose the later thought and blocked out the scene she had just seen.
Another story. A sixteen-year-old boy, stripped of his innocence, by a...a...Gundam.
'Kami sama, that's what they've been hiding. That's what Duo's been hiding. They're Gundam pilots.' she gulped, 'That's Quatre...'
Another scene began to unfold, but she closed her eyes, willing it to go away. She couldn't take it anymore.
'I don't want to know all their horrific pasts. Especially Duo's. I know he's still a little boy inside, covering up whatever happened to him with a happy, cheerful mood. Demo, that's why I love him. I want to be the one who he turns to. Not someone else...just me...' she collapsed on the floor, 'I want him to turn to me...'
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Duo watched as Usagi tossed and turned in her sleep. He brushed her hair back and she settled down under his touch. He kissed her lightly on her forehead and left the room.
Elsewhere...
Hiiro's fingers flew over his laptop's keyboard as he hacked into different files to get the information he needed. A 3-D figure appeared and data formed to the right of it.
Name: Usagi Tsukino
True Name: Unknown
Birthdate (chosen): June 30
Sign: Cancer
Bloodtype: O
Additional Notes: Usagi was found on the streets by Kenji and Ikuko Tsukino.
They adopted the girl who apparently was thirteen. Her only memory was the name Usagi which she decided to keep.
Last Updated: May 15, AC 195
"It's her." Hiiro said softly, turning off his laptop, "I've finally found her."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Yay! My longest chapter yet! With a nice, some-what cliffhangery ending! Arigato for everyone who reviewed the last chapter. And gomen nasai for taking so long to update, I was grounded...Remember to REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! (the more the better, if I get a lot, I'll make a real effort to update a.s.a.p.)
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Is This Called Destiny?
Chapter Two
Disclaimers: I don't own Sailor Moon or Gundam Wing.
Author's Notes: I was looking back at Chapter One and I realized I forgot the question mark after the title 'Is This Called Destiny?'. AND the chapter wasn't quite as long on the actual fanfiction.net. So, I will try to make this LONGER. Maybe about ten pages, maybe eight. Who knows? But definitely longer than five. (I'm very pleased with all the reviews I got before it was even up a day ^.^)
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Fate pulled back from the loom in front of her, beads of sweat on her forehead. The threads on the loom were rapidly reweaving themselves. Changing that girl's destiny had been harder than she thought. Her mind was still trying to comprehend the silver flashes of light that she herself had witnessed. What happened during those times was still a mystery to her.
"Fate..." a soft, deadly voice whispered from the doorway, a figure stepped into the dimly lit room.
"Destiny!" Fate whirled around, her eyes wide with shock, "You...you saw..."
"You know that was forbidden, Fate." Destiny said coldly, her emerald green eyes flashed dangerously, "Or need I remind you that it is our job to make sure people fulfill their destiny?"
"Hai." Fate said softly, "Demo, there's no more chance for her to be with this Mamoru person in this life is there? I mean, he's dead. There's no harm in giving her a chance..."
"Is that what you really think, Fate?" Destiny questioned cruelly, moving towards Fate, "Do you really think that people like us are permitted to give mere mortals chances? When those very chances could become a reality? Is that what you really think?"
"I..." Fate looked down ashamed, "I didn't realize..."
"Of course you didn't." Destiny continued, "Why else would you do something as foolish? You do realize that despite all your attempts, she will commit suicide again?"
"Have you been so blinded that you did not realize what this life means? This is her last life, Fate. Her final life." Destiny snapped, "Her final judgement. She is one of us, Fate! You should know what seat she shall take, there are only six left, and five of them are seats created for the opposite sex."
"Gomen nasai. Demo, I made a promise and that alone is sacred." Fate whispered.
"Hai, Fate, you have made a fatal mistake that day, a mistake that will change the course of time. But it can still be altered." Destiny moved towards the loom, "Come here, you see this thread here? This black one I have just inserted?"
Fate's sapphire blue eyes widened with horror as a sticky, black thread inserted itself somewhere in the girl's future. Nothing could tell what that thread held except that it held horrors not meant for everyday lives.
"This thread will change everything. It is the final judgment to see if their love is truly meant to be." Destiny snapped, and left the room abruptly.
'What have I done?' Fate collapsed on the floor, staring up at the loom, 'What have I done?'
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Duo woke up, his hand already on the gun he always kept under his pillow. He was trapped in some sort of grip, a distant part of him wondered how Oz had gotten through all of Quatre's security devices. He shifted slightly, a tighter grip and a small whimper was his response. His violet eyes filled with surprise, he had been expecting something along the lines of, 'Make another move and we'll blow your brains out.' He thought back to the night before, Usagi had come, she had fallen asleep when she had finished talking, he had placed her in his bed... Duo's eyes widened in realization and after nearly twisting his neck, he glimpsed Usagi, holding him in a perfect death grip.
He tried to move, and the small whimper that had come before grew slightly louder. Her only source of warmth was trying to get away and she wouldn't allow it. Duo sighed before gently removing her arms from around his waist. Another small whimper and before he knew it, she had pulled him back down and thrown her leg over his body, effectively locking him into place. He groaned, how could he forget? Usagi was VERY persistent.
"Usagi!" he whispered urgently in her ear.
"Iie, Shingo-no-baka." Usagi murmured softly, "I didn't sneak out last night. Now go away, I can still catch a couple more minutes of sleep."
Duo frowned, didn't she forget everything about her past? He raised his voice slightly and spoke her name again, louder than before. She whimpered and tightened her grip on him.
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Usagi shivered, everywhere she walked, there was the same thick, gray fog. A small movement caught her eye and she whirled around. A ghostly figure was walking towards an unknown destination. From this distance, all she could make out was a girl, with long black hair, dressed in priestess robes.
"Excuse me!" she called, her voice echoed through the emptiness.
The figure disappeared into the dense fog. Usagi rushed over to the spot where she had disappeared and all she saw was the fog, swirling around her. She saw another figure, this time, it was a girl, with short blue hair, carrying a thick book. Usagi tried to attract her attention but this figure also disappeared into the fog.
Usagi whimpered, she had an uneasy feeling about this place. Everywhere she turned, ghostly figures were walking around, ignorant of her. Then, just as suddenly, they all turned into smoke and disappeared. Usagi gulped and paled as voices started echoing across the canyon.
The voices were all calling her name. She was sure that they were all addressing her. Usagi looked wildly around her, trying to spot whoever was calling her. There was no one in sight, yet the voices continued to call her. She turned around and ran, trying to escape the echo of voices.
It seemed like she ran forever, when she slammed into a wall. She started walking quickly along the wall, her hand on it the whole time, feeling for a door, a window, anything that would lead her out of this place. Soon, she bumped into another wall.
The voices were getting closer and closer. She whimpered as the ghostly figures appeared again. All of them were calling her by a different name. They surrounded her, and she pressed herself into the corner, where the two walls met, trying to get away from them.
"Go away!" she pleaded, knowing she sounded pitiful, "Get away from me!"
The figures continued to close in on her, ignorant to her pleas. She was an ashy color now, her face paling with each step they took towards her.
"GO AWAY!!!" she shrieked and an unseen wind whipped around her, the figures turned into piles of ash that the wind soon blew away.
Usagi clung to the wall for support, she was trembling uncontrollably. Not because of the figures anymore, but because there seemed to be no way out of this place. She was trapped. Her breaths came in ragged gasps, as far back as she could remember, she had been claustrophobic. The area she was confined to wasn't very small, but it was definitely enclosed with no way out.
"Duo." she whispered softly, if she couldn't get out of this place, she'd never see him again.
"Usa-chan!!!!!" a voice echoed through the area, bouncing of the wall.
Usagi looked up sharply, she could recognize that voice anywhere, it was Duo...but where was he? The fog began to disappear and Usagi saw a glimmer of light, she looked all around her, she saw the light clearly enough, but she couldn't find its source. The fog completely disappeared and the brilliant light filled the area.
"Arigato, Duo-chan." she breathed softly and collapsed against the wall, "Arigato."
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Usagi's eyes flew open, she was back in Duo's room. She turned immediately and found herself staring into his deep violet eyes. They were currently filled with concern.
"D-chan, what's wrong?" Usagi questioned looking up at him.
"Nothing." Duo said quickly, deciding to question her about this Shingo person later, "But, could you please release me?"
"Nande?" Usagi's eyes filled with surprise, before she realized that she was hugging him tightly, "Gomen nasai."
She blushed furiously and released him quickly. He got up and stretched, meanwhile, Usagi took the time to study her surroundings. Everywhere she looked, she saw pictures of a...Gundam?
'Baka.' She reprimanded herself, 'They're selling posters of the Gundams everywhere. Why shouldn't he have some?'
"You're a big fan of Deathscythe, D-chan? You never told me that." she glanced at Duo who was checking his mail.
"Guess it slipped my mind, Usa." Duo answered, typing on his laptop with one hand.
Usagi got up and peered over his shoulder and read the mail as he deleted them, she read them aloud, "Kisama, Maxwell, Injustice, Maxwell, My name is Wufei, not Wu-man..." she continued for awhile, "I take it you still play lots of pranks on Wufei?"
"Why would I change, Usa? I consider it a very healthy hobby. I get lots of exercise. " Duo looked at her.
"Well...you did change your eating habits after I left. Wufei said so." she said slowly.
"You heard?" Duo cringed, had she heard about the mission too?
"Hai, but I was really tired so I didn't comment about it. I fell asleep after he said it though." Usagi murmured, 'He's hiding something. I shouldn't pry, he'll tell me in time if it's really important.'
"Oh." Duo let out the breath he had been holding, "Did you hear anything else?"
"Iie. I don't remember hearing anything else." Usagi chewed her lip, "Was I supposed to?"
"You didn't miss anything important, Quatre was just saying that he needed to get some supplies with the others so I have to show you around the house." Duo said hurriedly, "I think that was a bad choice though." he added as an afterthought, "I don't really know my way around the house. I can only get from my room...to the kitchen."
"Well, don't you have a map or something?" Usagi glanced at the rest of his so-called desk, it was covered with paper.
"Now that I think about it, I think he gave me a map when we got here..." Duo began to search through the piles of paper, "...I'm not sure where I put it though."
Usagi sighed softly, she began to help Duo search through the mountains of paper. A half hour later, they had gone through about three-quarters of the desk.
"I found it!" Duo yelled triumphantly, pulling a packet of paper out of the piles.
Usagi glanced at it and recognized Quatre's neat, precise handwriting. She began to flip through it, her eyes skimming over each page...until she came across something out of ordinary.
"Duo, why does Quatre-sama have a storage area? It looks like it's pretty big." she looked up at Duo.
"A storage area?" Duo took the map from her, "Oh, THAT storage area, well you see Quatre's dad needed to get a bunch of computer software for his company. He needed a lot, well, that was before he got...killed." Duo handed the map back to Usagi, "Now, it's hardly used except to store lots of food, mainly for me."
"Demo, you aren't eating, remember?" Usagi continued to look at him, 'This has something to do with what he's hiding! I just know it.'
"Well, in all the other mansions we were in. You know, before I met you." Duo fidgeted uncomfortably under her stare, "Do you want to eat something before I show you around?"
"Sure, I didn't know you could cook." Usagi gave the map to him and started walking out the door.
"Well, unless you know how, we could always eat something instant." Duo said, following her out, "Or we could eat out."
"I'll cook something." Usagi said quickly, "Where's the kitchen?"
Twenty minutes later, Usagi pushed Duo into a chair to prevent him from ruining the breakfast anymore. His so-called 'help' ended up ruining the eggs, burning the bread, and spilling the orange juice.
"I said I was sorry, Usa-chan!" Duo protested as he sulked in his chair.
"Hai, I know you are, but you really need some cooking lessons. And you don't exactly want to eat nothing for breakfast do you?" Usagi's back was faced to him as she tended the stove.
Duo grumbled something about eating a snack instead, but Usagi pointedly ignored him. A few minutes later, she set a plate in front of him and began to eat. Duo sampled the food in front of him before shoveling it into his mouth as usual. Needless to say, he finished just a few moments later.
"I'm done, Usa, ready to take a tour of the mansion?" Duo got up.
"Just a sec." Usagi answered, not bothering to look up at him.
"One." Duo counted, when he looked at her a split second later, she was standing up.
He blinked sharply, it was still there, a sparkling clean plate, Usagi smirked slightly.
"You blinked, didn't you?" she teased as she walked out the door.
Duo muttered about paying more attention the next time she did something like that. Usagi giggled softly at his antics, she had missed him so much after her vacation.
"Where do we start?" she called back, stopping so he could catch up.
"How about the basement?" Duo answered, taking the time to study the map in front of him, "It's that way." he pointed to the right of them.
Two hours later, Usagi stopped in front of another room. Duo opened the door and when she looked inside, she saw cardboard boxes stacked up, one on top of the other, all around the room.
"I take it, this is the storage room?" Usagi asked, stepping inside.
"Yeah, that's all of Quatre's emergency equipment, it includes stuff like food and can openers. Just in case there's like a blizzard or something." Duo said quickly, ushering her out, "Next is one of my favorite rooms, if I can find it. The arcade."
An hour later, Usagi sighed in relief, the tour was finally over. Quatre's sixteen floor mansion had finally been completely covered.
"I should get going, Duo." Usagi said, looking out onto the snow-covered lawn, "I need to get back to my apartment."
"But we still have a lot of catching up to do." Duo protested, he tried to think of a better excuse to get her to stay.
Usagi rolled her eyes and turned to look at him, "It's not like I can stay here forever, Duo."
"Well, actually, that could be easily arranged." a voice said from the doorway of Duo's room.
Usagi shrieked and whirled around to find herself staring into Quatre's light blue eyes.
She glared at him, "Not funny. You nearly gave me a premature heart attack!"
"Gomen nasai, I didn't mean to scare you." Quatre apologized.
"What's this about the onna staying here forever?!" Wufei glared at her.
"Well, I have plenty of spare rooms, all Usagi really had to do is move all her stuff here." Quatre said quite reasonably.
"Injustice! I refuse to live in the same house as this...this...weak onna!!!" Wufei sputtered angrily.
"Keep that up, and I'll move in just to annoy you." Usagi snapped, "Although, moving in isn't such a bad idea." she murmured thoughtfully, "Driving here all the time would make my gas bill go up by a lot."
"Really, Q-man? You'll let Usagi live here too?" Duo asked curiously.
"I don't really mind and as I said before, there are plenty of rooms in the house." Quatre stated.
"I won't mind living here, as long as none of you enter my room without knocking." Usagi murmured.
"Then it's settled!" Duo said cheerfully, "Usagi'll move in as soon as they clear up the roads!"
"Nande?!?! INJUSTICE!!! Winner, you're letting this weak onna LIVE in this mansion!!!!" Wufei roared.
Usagi's eyes turned an icy shade of blue and she snatched the gun that was under Duo's pillow. Turning to face Wufei, she clicked off the safety and aimed it directly between his eyes.
"I warned you..." she said coldly, walking forward slowly.
Hiiro's eyes widened slightly from the shadows, outside of Duo's room. He had arrived there seconds after he heard the safety of someone's gun going off. His mind instantly replaced Usagi with a girl, around ten, holding a gun the same exact way. Her hair was pulled into two silver odangos and her eyes had turned an icy blue, quite the opposite of her usually warm, silvery-blue eyes.
The figure flickered and was replaced again with Usagi, her hair was in its usual pony-tail that reached her feet. Hiiro stepped out of the shadows, his own gun drawn, the safety already off. The girl he knew was completely unpredictable, even without her memories, Usagi could still be deadly.
Usagi's eyes settled on him, they were cold and emotionless. Wufei moved out of the way of the gun, but the gun moved with him, always centering itself between his eyes. Duo gulped as Hiiro aimed his gun at her carefully.
"Usa-chan..." Duo said softly, he moved forward and placed himself between Wufei and Usagi, "You don't really want to kill Wu-man do you?"
Usagi's hand shook slightly and she looked down, "Gomen nasai, I guess I let my temper get the better of me." she murmured softly, lowering the gun.
Wufei darted out the door and her head snapped up sharply, her body stiffened visibly before relaxing. Hiiro slowly withdrew his gun and left as well. The only ones left were Trowa and Quatre, who was pale with fright. Trowa left after Hiiro but Quatre remained there.
"She can still stay here, can't she, Quatre?" Duo looked at him hopefully.
"H..h..hai." Quatre stuttered before making a quick exit.
Duo turned back to Usagi who was still holding the gun as if her life depended on it. He moved toward her and took it out of her grip, her eyes were still filled with fright.
"That felt so...familiar..." she whispered softly, "Like I've held a gun all my life..."
**Flashback**
A young girl stood seven feet away from a target. Her sapphire blue eyes were cold and emotionless as she clicked the safety off of the gun in her hands. She had been given permission to tack a picture on the otherwise faceless cardboard person. She aimed and fired. Shooting right between the eyes of the person tacked onto the target.
"Well done, not bad at all for your first time using a gun." a voice said from the shadows.
"Hnn." was the only answer the girl gave him, she dropped the gun and walked away.
An old, somewhat grizzled man stepped out of the shadows and moved in closer to the target. He stopped in momentary shock when he recognized the picture tacked on there. It was himself...
**End Flashback**
Usagi staggered back, clutching her head, "Iie..." she whispered, "I don't kill people for fun..." she was near tears now, "I don't kill people..."
Duo caught her as she began to fall. He gently deposited her on his bed, she was asleep again, or in shock. He checked her pulse, it was normal, everything was normal. She must have been completely exhausted after that tour, but she hadn't wanted to worry him.
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
She was here again... The dense, gray fog was back. Usagi looked around herself, empty, all she could feel was emptiness. No emotions, just a cold, dark feeling. It reminded her so much of Hiiro. Always cold and detached to everything, unemotional. She shivered, the air had suddenly dropped a few degrees.
Usagi tripped over something, she bent down to examine it but recoiled with fright. It was a gun, black and shining, shining with a deadly light. Filled with evil. Duo owned one, for protection, she had supposed. Or was it something else? The same thing he was hiding from her.
She paled, ghostly figures were walking around her again. The same grizzled old man she had seen before she had collapsed. A small story unfolded before her. A young boy, hardly older than three, being beaten, shunned, and deprived of all love, turning into a cold-hearted warrior with no feelings. It was amazing what love could do...except she recognized this cold warrior. It was...Hiiro.
'This is why he's so emotionless. That's why he pushes everyone away...' she pulled back from the scene, lost in her own thoughts, 'Inside, he's just a little boy, or is he really that unreachable?' she decided to choose the later thought and blocked out the scene she had just seen.
Another story. A sixteen-year-old boy, stripped of his innocence, by a...a...Gundam.
'Kami sama, that's what they've been hiding. That's what Duo's been hiding. They're Gundam pilots.' she gulped, 'That's Quatre...'
Another scene began to unfold, but she closed her eyes, willing it to go away. She couldn't take it anymore.
'I don't want to know all their horrific pasts. Especially Duo's. I know he's still a little boy inside, covering up whatever happened to him with a happy, cheerful mood. Demo, that's why I love him. I want to be the one who he turns to. Not someone else...just me...' she collapsed on the floor, 'I want him to turn to me...'
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Duo watched as Usagi tossed and turned in her sleep. He brushed her hair back and she settled down under his touch. He kissed her lightly on her forehead and left the room.
Elsewhere...
Hiiro's fingers flew over his laptop's keyboard as he hacked into different files to get the information he needed. A 3-D figure appeared and data formed to the right of it.
Name: Usagi Tsukino
True Name: Unknown
Birthdate (chosen): June 30
Sign: Cancer
Bloodtype: O
Additional Notes: Usagi was found on the streets by Kenji and Ikuko Tsukino.
They adopted the girl who apparently was thirteen. Her only memory was the name Usagi which she decided to keep.
Last Updated: May 15, AC 195
"It's her." Hiiro said softly, turning off his laptop, "I've finally found her."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Yay! My longest chapter yet! With a nice, some-what cliffhangery ending! Arigato for everyone who reviewed the last chapter. And gomen nasai for taking so long to update, I was grounded...Remember to REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! (the more the better, if I get a lot, I'll make a real effort to update a.s.a.p.)
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx