The New Normal
Scene from my first story and regular canon happen if they are not contradicted, which I will explain in the bottom note.
"Regular speech"
'Thought'
"Video call or voice chat"
Setsuna
Setsuna groaned, consciousness coming to him after the best night in his life in a long while. After he and Feldt had left the hanger, the two had quickly fallen into her bed, making love again. They took it slower, taking their sweet time, knowing they were both safe and the desperation they had felt initially had passed. He could definitely feel the soreness throughout his body, but it was a good ache. 'That is something I can get used to.' Her bed was also the most comfortable thing he had slept in in a long time, the bed back in his makeshift home a hard mattress that he had to get used to. And the feeling of his girlfriend cuddling into side was a bonus, her hair splayed on the bed and her arms wrapped around his arm being the last image he saw before he fell asleep.
He opened his eyes, the light rushing in, forcing him to blink to adapt to them. Closing one eye, he looked to his left to see the clock showing 0815. 'Plenty of time to get ready.' He looked to his right to see Feldt tightly holding his arm, a peaceful smile on her face. 'Why is her grip so tight?' He kissed the top of her head and tried to pull his arm out of her grasp, needing to get ready to meet Marlene. 'At least she seems to approve of Feldt and I.' He was met with immediate resistance as Feldt held tightly onto him, whining at him trying to separate from her. He tried to remove her arms with his free arm, but that also resulted in failure. He then caught Feldt's eyes opening for a split second before closing. The raven-haired man let out a sigh. 'So this is what she's doing.'
"Feldt, I know you are awake." Feldt pretended to stay asleep before opening them, her sea-green eyes showing embarrassment. Setsuna spoke gently, "Feldt, we both have to get up."
Feldt's voice was groggy, "Don't wanna. Go back to bed."
"It's past 8. You have a shift to get to and I have to meet your mother." Feldt mumbled under her breath but didn't move. Setsuna smiled at her, "If I kiss you, will you let me go?"
Feldt blushed prettily, "Yes." Setsuna pulled her close for a quick kiss, Feldt happily kissing back. As he opened his eyes and broke the kiss, he saw her bright smile and felt her grip on his arm loosen. He shifted and got out of bed, moving to the shower in her bathroom.
He heard Feldt speak nervously behind him, "Do you mind if I join you?"
Setsuna looked back her, seeing her blushing pink with a pleading look standing next to the bed. He knew it would take them longer if she joined him, but right now he was in a good mood, "Why not?" Feldt grinned at him and he felt like he should regret this, but he really didn't. He could hear her steps behind him. 'I hope it won't delay him too much.'
'Note for later. Don't share a shower with Feldt when you are on a time limit.' Setsuna made his way to the meeting room, knowing he might be a little late. He had gotten a map of the base on his mini-terminal after he updated it and he was rushing to get to his meeting. 'I don't want to explain to the mother of my girlfriend that I was late because I had sex with her daughter in the shower.' He shook his head at that. He had to keep his head on straight. Marlene would probably be doing a serious debrief. He checked the time, which showed 0855. 'I should make it.'
Reaching the door just in time, he opened it to find a small meeting room, with a central table and railings on the side of the room. Marlene sat at the table, wearing that uniform that he had seen everyone wearing, though the colors did vary. Currently all he had was a few button-down shirts and dark pants. 'I assume they are going to get one for me.' Marlene pointed at the seat across from her, her voice even, "Please, sit down."
Setsuna sat down, maintaining eye contact with the blonde woman. She was hard to read, keeping an even look. 'She's so different from Feldt. Then again, kids can be very different from their parents.' She continued, "I hope you found it easy enough to find your way here."
Setsuna nodded, "The map was easy enough to follow. I am surprised to see a large base like this hidden in plain sight."
Marlene smirked slightly at that, "Sometimes that is the best way to hide. You did the same, if your info was correct." He nodded at that, and the blonde woman activated a projector on the table, showing a collection of the data he had collected over three years. She placed her hands on the table, "I and a few others analyzed the data you reported last night. Thank you for thinking of doing that and it was able to confirm some theories we had. But I would like to hear your account of the three years."
Setsuna nodded, going over the time period after Operation Fallen Angels, mainly covering the missions he went on, intel he recovered the process and general observations about what he had seen. Marlene stayed silent, letting him explain everything. Setsuna found it a bit frustrating to read her, her face like a stone wall. 'Was this what it was like with me four years ago?' Despite this inability to read her, he felt strangely comfortable around her. If he had to guess, it was her professional attitude. It was strange to see someone besides Tieria and him act like that, but here was someone else.
As he finished up his story, Marlene spoke up, her tone a little bit warmer, "You did well to survive on your own. It was risky to engage the ESF on your own."
Setsuna just shrugged his shoulders, "I had to do something. I didn't know what the state of Celestial Being was, so if I was the only one of us fighting them so be it."
Marlene grinned slightly, "My daughter did say you were stubborn."
Setsuna blushed slightly at that, but quickly corrected that, speaking plainly, "You said earlier that my data confirmed some theories you had. What were those?"
Marlene nodded, bringing up some new data on the projector showing red and white colored mobile suits, ones that he immediately recognized. Marlene pointed to the images, "These are mobile suits that we kept seeing rare glimpses of but could never track a pattern. We couldn't tell if they were government hired mercenaries or some sort of special forces. With your data, it was made clear they are a secret special forces organization doing the bidding of the government."
The image shifted to show remains of Katharon bases and other small facilities, corpses littering the areas. Marlene continued, "Their actions show no limit on what they would do or who they would kill. And the fact none of their actions are shown in the media means the government doesn't want people to know their true actions." Her voice had a tinge of disgust as she finished. Setsuna clenched his fists at the image. The unified and peaceful world they fought for had not come about, despite their sacrifices. 'Neil, Lichty, Christina, Dr. Moreno.'
Marlene nodded at his reaction, "I see you are just as disgusted as the rest of us here. I am happy to report we are in the process of rebuilding the Gundams for a new team and we have a new one in the pipeline for you. It should only take two more months or so."
"If you could give me technical data on it, I would like to look at it." Setsuna wanted to familiarize himself with this new machine as quickly as possible. He then asked her, "Do you have plans to find other pilots? You only have two full meisters at the moment and two reserve meisters." Setsuna's mind thought back on the feeling of Allelujah being missing. 'I hope he's alive.'
Marlene looked him in the eyes, her expression tightening at the mention of reserve meisters "Understood. And to answer your question, we have people on the lookout for recruits. Currently, we are trying to locate Allelujah Haptism, but have had no luck. Wherever he is, assuming he's alive, must be top secret."
Setsuna frowned at the thought of being unable to find Allelujah, but realistically he knew the search wouldn't be easy. 'We'll find him. Like they found me.' Setsuna nodded at that and gave her a curious look, "Do you have anything else you want? Or am I free to go?"
Marlene shut off the projection, and suddenly he could read her a bit as she looked at him, almost analyzing him. 'What is that look?' She then let out a breath, and gave him a pensive look, "Yes, that is it for your debrief. However, I have a few personal questions I wish to ask you."
Setsuna pursed his lips, already having a good idea of what she wanted to ask about, "This is about Feldt, isn't it?"
Marlene nodded, looking extra awkward and stiff, "Yes. My daughter loves you, but I need to know how you feel about her. I just got her back and I need to know if she's in good hands." Setsuna could tell she was a bit out of her comfort zone and in the back of his mind, he was happy she wasn't yelling at him or threatening him.
Setsuna let out a deep breath, a blush growing on his cheeks, "Your daughter…she was like a light in the darkness. She was one of the only people who got to know me on the Ptolemaios, the only to hang out with me. She was kind, patient and just made me feel comfortable. She opened up my heart gradually, which I hadn't realized till I saw her in a gift I got her." Setsuna looked down at the table, the memory of the moment going through his head as his blush intensified, "She looked so beautiful, like a Gundam, or an angel. Being with her felt so right and I regretted being apart from her for so long."
He let out a regretful sigh, "I just want to show her all the love I have for her, what we lost for three years." He looked back up to see Marlene giving him a warm smile.
"You really do love my daughter, don't you?" Marlene let out a chuckle as the raven-haired man nodded, then sighed, "I got a good picture of you from the missions and my daughter talking about you, but I had to see it myself. I want you to know that I approve of you, though I would appreciate you covering up your hickeys."
Setsuna felt along his neck, groaning with embarrassment as he realized Feldt left them all over his neck last night. Setsuna could feel the heat on his face as he responded, "I'll tell her to do them lower. Feldt is-"
Marlene put a hand up, shaking her head, "I don't need to hear this. Just make sure they aren't obvious on either of you." Setsuna nodded and Marlene gave him a bittersweet smile, "I also want to request a favor from you."
Setsuna tilted his head, "What do you want me to do?"
Marlene let out a heavy sigh, wringing her hands, "I assume you know my daughter is a reserve meister." Setsuna nodded and Marlene continued, "She has been getting help from Lasse and Tieria, but I want you to take over her training. You have the most practical combat experience out of the current meisters… and it would free up those two for other responsibilities. I think my daughter would enjoy training with you, either under you or against you."
Setsuna could detect the hesitance in her voice, like she didn't want to be doing this. 'Is she worried about Feldt? I could see her worrying as a parent. My mother…' He shied away from the thought, the mental wound having become a scar over the years, but it was still a regret that never fully went away. He nodded at Marlene's concern, "I will do that. I'll make sure that she is as skilled as I could possibly make her."
Marlene gave him a respectful nod, "Thank you."
Setsuna looked at her curiously, "So what should I call you? Especially in the face of me being with your daughter."
Marlene pursed her lips in thought, "Please, call me Marlene, or Commander Vlady if you want to be formal. I don't mind either." He could tell that she didn't seem to hung up on people calling her commander by the way she didn't emphasis the word.
"So did you not officially name yourself commander?"
She shook her head, "No, people took to calling me it, probably out of respect, but I never told anyone that. As long as they call me some variant of Ms. Vlady or Commander, I don't mind too much. Though Marlene is only for people I trust."
"You why let me call you Marlene?"
She smirked slightly, "Because I trust you." Setsuna found it strange she trusted him so soon, but he wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. Marlene then handed him a form, showing a selection process for a uniform, "Fill this out and get this to logistics. You should have a uniform like mine in a few days." Setsuna could see her shifting back to professional mode, her expression becoming hard to read again. 'She must only be open in private.'
Setsuna just nodded and asked, "Am I free to explore?"
"Yes. You will be assigned responsibilities in a few days. You deserve a small break after being alone so long." Marlene stood up, moving to the door of the small conference room. Before she exited the room, she called out to him in a softer voice, "Please keep her safe and happy." The door opened and closed, leaving Setsuna alone.
Setsuna looked down at the table. 'It's strange to have someone so formal after dealing with Sumeragi's more loose leadership.' It wasn't necessarily worse, just different. It was nice she seemed to like him though. He wouldn't want to upset Feldt by having him and her mother argue. Setsuna stood up, curiosity about the rest of the base and what was here filling his mind. He would definitely check up on the Exia and Ian, maybe ask about this new project. 'I can ask Feldt later about Sumeragi.'
Following Marlene's lead, he headed to the sliding door and exited the room, beginning his exploration.
Feldt
Feldt stood in one of the hanger control rooms, looking down at some of the workers repairing the Exia. The suit's drive had been removed, but Ian had said he wanted it fixed and upgraded just in case. Feldt had to admit she found it hard to focus, her thoughts drifting back to Setsuna, causing an almost permanent blush on her face. 'Thank god my scarf covers my neck.' She still felt a bit sore from last night and this morning. She was lucky she was alone up here, otherwise she would definitely be getting curious looks from everyone.
Her embarrassed musings were interrupted by the door to the control room opening. Feldt turned her head to see Mileina and Linda enter the room. Mileina was the daughter of Linda and someone she had known for years, even before being assigned to the Ptolemy. Mileina approached Feldt with a smile, her drill-like pig tails bouncing in zero gravity. The younger teenager wore a similar uniform to Feldt, though it was in yellow instead of the pink and green of Feldt's and had a short skirt instead of the pants Feldt wore. The girl chirped happily, "Hey there Feldt! You look much happier!" Mileina grinned, "I heard through the grapevine a certain meister appeared back again." Feldt had shared her feelings about Setsuna with Mileina ever since she joined as a regular mechanic, the girl heavily approving of Feldt's hunt for the lost meister.
Feldt's blush intensified, knowing Mileina would hunt down info on gossip like a blood hound, especially love stuff. Feldt tried to unsuccessfully fight her blush as she responded, "Yes, Setsuna is back. I really am happy." It reminded her a little bit of Christina, not helping with the blushing.
Mileina's eyes glowed with happy curiosity, "Ooh! I'm so excited you found him! So is he your boyfriend now? Have you kissed him?"
Feldt gave Mileina a sigh, then smiled, "Yes, he is my boyfriend, and yes, we have kissed. How did you learn about this? He only got back yesterday evening."
Mileina put a hand under her chin, "Well my dad was grumbling about Setsuna and the Exia being so damaged, and I realized he would only be complaining if the Exia was back and only Setsuna had it, so…"
Feldt facepalmed, know how Ian would obviously have told Mileina, by accident or on purpose. 'Then again, his return isn't supposed to be a secret.'
Mileina broke Feldt's train of thought, "Well I'm just happy you are happy again." Mileina's eyes widened again, her voice raising in pitch, "I call being the godmother of your first child!" Feldt smiled sadly. 'Christina would have said the same thing.' Her mind then caught up with the full implications of Mileina's statement.
'Kids?! We haven't talked about kids yet!' Feldt was about to respond when Linda beat her to it, her voice motherly, "Mileina, they just got back. I'm certain kids aren't going to happen just yet. Give them time." The blonde woman, dressed more conservatively than her daughter with a longer skirt, and maroon shirt and red jacket, was a relief to Feldt. Linda was one of the few people that could get her daughter to calm down when she started firing questions like a machine gun.
Mileina pouted, "Fine. But you are no fun."
Linda smiled at Feldt, "You look so much more relaxed. I'm happy Mr. Seiei is back, for you and for the rest of Celestial Being. My husband is too, despite his claims."
Feldt smiled back at her, the blush receding, "Ian is just like that with him. Setsuna always made him tear his hair out."
"Yes, he did."
Feldt looked down nervously, "I hope the meeting Setsuna had with my mom went well."
Linda floated over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder, "I'm certain it's going fine. She probably even likes his attitude."
Just the Mileina heard her mini-terminal go off and called out to her mother and Feldt, "Dad said he needs my help, so I'll see both of you later!"
Both Feldt and Linda waved her goodbye as she left and Feldt suddenly saw Linda smirking at her. 'Why do I have a bad feeling about this?' The redhead spoke uneasily, "Ms. Vashti?"
Linda kept grinning as she responded, "I bet you really enjoyed reuniting with Setsuna."
Feldt's blush immediately rushed back, the heat in her cheeks like a mini sun, "What do you mean?"
Linda rolled her eyes playfully, "Feldt, we both are adults. You know exactly what I mean."
"I…we…how did you know?"
Linda chuckled, "Feldt, I was young once too. I know what it's like. And by the way, you picked a good looking one. I can see why you moved so fast." Linda pulled down Feldt's scarf, seeing the marks on her neck, "I see you had a very good time."
Feldt's mind felt like it was short circuiting, not knowing what to say, "I…he…what?" 'All of the confidence I had in private with Setsuna is now gone. Fun.'
Linda laughed, enjoying Feldt's embarrassment, "I forgot what it was like to be so young." She pat Feldt on the soulder, "You'll get used to this kind of talk, maybe even come to enjoy it. Don't worry about it."
Feldt mock glared at the older woman, before looking away, "Why are you being mean to me?"
"Because a little bit of teasing is always good." Linda's voice took a kinder tone, "I really am happy for you. It must be nice to actually be with the man you love."
Feldt nodded her head, "Yeah, it really is."
Linda gave her a warm smile, "Well, I'll leave you to your business. I just wanted to check up on you. I'll see you later. I want to meet this boyfriend of yours soon."
"I'll introduce you two when I can. And I'll see you later as well." Linda left the room and Feldt could feel the heat in her face coming down to a reasonable level. Despite the teasing, Feldt could feel a welling up of happiness inside her. Despite the obstacles in front of them, she had Setsuna at her side. 'I wouldn't trade that for anything.'
Setsuna
Setsuna had been exploring the base for the last few hours and he was amazed. He had no idea that Celestial Being was as large an organization as it was. The Ptolemaios team four years ago had been the main military arm of the organization, but it made sense there was a large support staff. 'Veda separated a lot of the cells it seems.' Setsuna hadn't seen much of the facilities before the interventions, let alone this one.
It felt strangely familiar, but that was probably because it felt a bit like the interior of the Ptolemaios. 'At least my home for the time being will be familiar enough with me.' Opening a door labeled meister's lounge, he was greeted with Tieria lying down on a couch, looking up at the ceiling. Tieria's red eyes turned to look at Setsuna, who gave him a wave. Tieria waved back and Setsuna entered the room, which was relatively simple, containing a few chairs and couches that came out of the wall, a small kitchen and a large round table near said kitchen. Setsuna also noted Tieria was in this new uniform that he saw on Marlene, this time with a dark purple short coat and lighter purple shirt.
Tieria gave Setsuna a small smile, "I see you are exploring. Find anything interesting?"
Setsuna nodded slightly, "Nothing in particular, but I'm amazed at the size of the base. It makes the base I was staying in look like a small house."
"We do have a decent amount of resources to use, though this base was here before even we were active." Tieria stood up, putting a hand on Setsuna's shoulder. Setsuna felt a small smile come to his face. It was nice to be able to not react negatively to touching anymore, which was something he learned to do over the three years alone. Tieria spoke in a friendly tone, "It's great to see you back. We all were worried about you, though Feldt was the most. I tried to be there for her as best I could, but I wasn't you."
Setsuna internally sighed in relief at that. While he knew Feldt loved him and he loved her, Feldt had told him she and Tieria had bonded since Fallen Angels, leaving a small doubt in Setsuna's mind about Tieria's feelings. He knew he was being silly, but it wouldn't leave. 'At least he doesn't think of her that way, not that I would blame him.'
"Thank you for being there for her. It's nice to know she had you and her mother to talk to about things."
Tieria blushed a bit, before it disappeared, "She was there for me too, so I had to be there for her. When she was especially bad, she would moan about you not being here and her mother had to distract her with extra work."
Setsuna chuckled, "I would have loved to see that."
Tieria joined him, "I wished I could have recorded it, but Feldt would have found some way to delete it."
Setsuna shook his head in disappointment, before smiling, "If you had told everyone four years ago that we would be standing here and laughing with each other, they would have said we were crazy."
"Agreed. I hated your guts back then, especially after stunts like Moralia." Tieria looked wistfully as he continued, "I was so focused on being perfect for Veda, I ignored the human element of Celestial Being. Can't say I am as loose about rules as you, but the mission isn't always the most important as I thought it was before."
Setsuna smirked, "So you aren't going to yell at me for opening my cockpit in a battle?"
Tieria rolled his eyes, "Only if it's a completely stupid idea." He then quirked an eyebrow, "And the way I remember you was an anti-social loner who was obsessed with Gundams."
Setsuna nodded in agreement, "I admit, Gundams are still something that interest me immensely, but my interests have shifted a little bit."
"I bet." Setsuna blushed slightly at Tieria's implication. Tieria looked at the raven-haired man curiously, "Do you mind if I join you? I can guide you."
Setsuna nodded, "That would be appreciated. Maybe you can catch me up on what's going on with the organization? I'm kinda lost on that."
"Certainly." Setsuna smiled as Tieria took the lead. 'It's great to be back to civilization. And it's nice to see a friendly Tieria.'
Feldt
Feldt trudged back to her room, her day a long and boring slog, not helped by anticipation of being with Setsuna again. She had seen him in the hanger out of the corner of his eye when he was touring the base, but at that time she was dealing with something else. 'I hope Setsuna is back at least. I can at least cuddle him to relax.'
Opening her door, she saw Setsuna standing in the middle of her room, examining a light green scarf with curiosity. 'I thought I hid it!' Feldt approached Setsuna, nervously smiling, "Hey Setsuna! Where did you find that?"
"Hi." He glided over to her, scarf still in his hand, giving her a quick kiss, "I found this sticking out of the closet and was curious what it was. It's a very good scarf. Did you make it?"
Feldt blushed, nodding bashfully. Even if she had been told before that it was good, it still felt extra special to hear her boyfriend compliment her. She coughed, trying to clear the butterflies in her stomach, "I made it after I thought how it was unfair that I have your scarf and you don't have one anymore. I didn't know how to knit, so some of the staff taught me a year ago. I went through a few of them before I finally figured out what I was doing." Feldt let out a nervous breath, "You deserve something, for the things that you gave me. For the happiness you brought me. I wanted to give you this earlier, but I guess I blanked on that."
Setsuna looked at the scarf with wide eyes, and Feldt could tell he was a bit overwhelmed. 'He must not have received a lot of gifts before.' She approached him, gently placing a hand on his arm. He looked at her, a tear going down his cheek, "I…I can't remember that last time someone made something for me. I didn't expect…I don't think I deserve it."
Feldt kissed him on the cheek, "Setsuna, you deserve so much more than you have been given. It's time you have something good happen to you."
"But I have you. I don't need much else."
Feldt blushed intensely, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, embracing him. She pulled him in for a longer kiss, showing Setsuna all the love she had for him. He kissed her back, another tear running down his cheek. The kiss broke and Feldt beamed at him, "I know. But I wanted to show you how I felt. You gave me your scarf. I want to give you one I made for you. So you can have something from me, like I have from you."
Setsuna replied nervously, his blush intense, "I…this is just so new to me. I don't know what to do, to feel. It feels like my face is on fire." It was heartwarming to see Setsuna so out of sorts by this action. Normally he was so in control, but right in front of her was a confused, yet happy Setsuna.
Feldt beamed at him, "Well that makes two of us." Feldt broke the embrace and grabbed the scarf, wrapping it around Setsuna's neck. The green scarf looked good on him, and the redhead had to admit seeing her scarf around his neck gave her a sense of pride. It was like a sign that Setsuna was hers. She intertwined their fingers, holding onto his arm, "Now we match." The two scarves floated next to each other, the red and green complimenting each other.
Setsuna smiled warmly at her, causing Feldt's heart to race seeing him look so innocently happy. Setsuna intertwined their other hands, and looked her in the eyes, "It's you and me. I wouldn't want anyone else by my side."
Feldt nodded, excited and nervous at the same time, "Yes. No matter what happens, we stay together." Setsuna nodded and pulled her in for another kiss, which was light and full of love. 'It'll be days like this that almost make it all worth it. All that time we lost.' She knew that there were responsibilities they would both have, but in this room, they could just be together and open with each other. She had no idea what the future held, but Setsuna would be in it.
Author Note
Welcome to the story, readers new and old! It certainly was a lot of fluff, but we will eventually get to plot. On an explanatory note, this story is going to mostly follow my first story, In Another Time, Another World, as a base for canon and back ground details. Unless this story directly contradicts that canon, assume those events are happening. And show canon not changed by the listed story is also in play, which is mostly on the background villain stuff. I am writing an AU of an AU.
I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and are excited for the next one! Please review, comment, kudos, favorite, etc. and I'll see you guys next week!
