Disclaimer: Same as the hundred-odd chapters on my other forty-odd stories.
Author's Notes: Thanks for the feedback;) I never mean to be hard on Heero; he's my favorite pilot. He even outranks Duo on my list. We always hurt the ones we love.
****
Any Lucky Penny
by Kristen Elizabeth
****
"What?" Heero shook his head. "I'm..."
"Dead. You were shot by a sniper hoping to assassinate the President. I'm sorry to have to tell you, Heero Yuy...but you didn't make it."
The words were so matter-of-fact that Heero took a step backwards. "Relena..."
"Oh, she's fine. Well...safe, anyway." The girl paused. "Would you like to see her?"
"I...Relena..."
"I'll take that as a yes." With her thumb and forefinger pinched together, she drew up a viewing panel out of the air around them as though she were pulling up a projector screen. "Here." A moment later, a picture materialized.
Heero moved forward. It was Relena, dressed in all black and seated before an open grave. A handkerchief was pressed to her mouth as she stared at the shiny coffin suspended over the deep, freshly dug hole. Her slender shoulders shook and there were horrible dark circles underneath her eyes.
"She blames herself," the girl spoke up. "She hasn't slept or eaten since it happened."
His chest began to hurt again. "How long have...has it been since..."
"Four days."
"Four days," he repeated. "I don't....I can't believe it!" He turned away from the image of Relena. "I can't be dead. I have to protect her!"
The girl gave him a long look. "There are others who can do that. She is constantly surrounded by people now. Besides...they did catch the man who did this. Don't worry about Relena."
"I don't understand," Heero began again, his voice taking on a note of desperation.
"All right, let me try to explain it all again." Speaking well beyond her years, the girl continued, "Four days ago you were shot straight through the heart in a fouled assassination attempt on Relena's life. It was relatively painless and you died almost instantly, although she made them try for nearly an hour to revive you."
He pressed a hand to the center of his torso. "It wasn't painless..."
"It wasn't for me either." She smiled. "But forgetting that for the moment, you are dead."
"I'm dead..." The reality was slow to sink in, but there seemed no other explanation for his current circumstances. "I'm dead."
The little girl nodded once. "And now you're here."
His head throbbed. "Where's here?"
"The Midway," the girl replied.
"Heaven?" he asked, doubtfully. When she shook her head, he tried again. "Hell?"
"It's neither and both."
Heero rubbed his forehead with the back of his hand. "Well, that clears it up for me."
"The Midway is where we go when we leave our life too soon," she explained.
"Don't we all die when we're supposed to?"
"Yes." She smiled again. "And no. When I say too soon, I mean when we die with unfinished business. You have died too soon, Heero Yuy. And I'm here to help you."
Heero blinked several times. "Unfinished..." Then he stopped cold. "Relena." The girl nodded. "But how can I....what do I need to do to..."
"Unless you want to stay here alone forever..." She gestured to the expanse of white emptiness. "You have to finish your business."
He licked his lower lip and after a moment, turned back to the viewing panel. The scene had changed; time moved differently in the Midway, apparently. It was now night, and Relena was curled up in her bed, clutching her sheets up to her chin, quaking in the throes of a nightmare. "Relena!" he called out to her image. "I'm here, Relena. Can you hear me?"
"Of course she can't," the girl scolded. "She's on Earth; we're in the Midway."
"Then..." Heero balled up his fists. "I don't understand any of this. I'm not even sure I really believe it. You said you were sent to help me?" She nodded again. "Then quit talking in riddles and help me."
After studying him for a minute, the girl lifted her chin. "I can see why you need this. You loved her very much, didn't you?" He looked away. "And you never told her."
"I was going to," Heero said quietly. "I just needed...more time."
"Time is something you really don't have anymore," she stated without any remorse. "Or...you shouldn't, at least."
He frowned. "What do you mean by that?"
"I wasn't sent here to smooth your transition into the afterlife, Heero Yuy." The little girl moved closer to him. "I've come here to offer you this one last chance to escape the Midway."
"More riddles," Heero sighed.
The girl gave him a wry smile. "I'll state it quite plainly then. There is a way for you to return to Earth and finish your business." His eyes lit up. "I assume you'll be taking it then?"
"I need to tell Relena..." He paused, trying to keep his sudden excitement in check. "I need to hold her and tell her....everything." His gaze turned back to the image of her. She was waking up now and the morning tears that coursed down her cheeks were painful to watch. Knowing that he would soon be able to wipe them away...Heero had to smile.
After another moment, the girl continued. "There is a catch."
His smile faltered. "Whatever it is...I can deal with it."
"Are you sure?" When he nodded, she bobbed her own head. "Very well then."
A long moment passed. On the screen, Relena managed to pull herself out of bed. The gentleman in Heero forced his gaze away when she began to undress. "Well...what's the catch?" he demanded.
The girl considered him for a second. "Returning to Earth and being able to walk amongst the living is not as simple as I might have made it sound." She hesitated. "You will need a host."
"A host?"
"A body," she clarified. "A living human being who is willing to give up their physical form to your spirit."
Heero thought about this for a moment. "But...if I'm in their body, how will Relena know that I'm...."
"She won't." The silence that followed was thick and cold. "I'm not an angel, Heero Yuy. I'm here because you killed me. Accidently, but I'm dead just the same. I have been for a very long time. And because you killed me, it's my job...and somewhat of my entitlement...to be here with you during this time. As you will get to do for your killer someday."
His mind clouded with confusion, Heero pressed further. "She'll only see..."
"The host. Whoever that might be. This is your challenge. To do what you should have done while you were alive in a body other than your own. Neither heaven, nor hell. The Midway."
"So...this is a punishment."
"Only if you choose to think of it like that." The girl's lips curled up pleasantly. "You'll have two Earth days."
"Two days?! That's not...it's not enough time! Not if she can't see that it's me! And it's not..." His voice gave way for an extended beat. "It's not enough time with her."
The little girl clasped her hands together. "You were given six years with her, Heero Yuy. It is no one's fault but your own that now you have only two days to do what could have easily been done then." She looked back at the screen. Relena was dressed now and being escorted by a team of no less than four Preventers out the door of her mansion and into her limousine. "Choose your host wisely. He or she is your last chance."
Heero watched Relena in the backseat of her limo. Her eyes were closed, but she was not sleeping. It looked like it was too much of an effort for her to even keep them open. "I can't let her blame herself anymore," he said out loud. His head swung back to the little girl. "Tell me what I need to do to contact a host."
"You've chosen one then?"
He nodded. "I just hope he's feeling generous."
****
"Aww...fuck." Bending over at the waist as he sat on the edge of his horribly rumpled bed, Duo Maxwell held his head between his hands to keep his brains from exploding. "What the fuck did I drink last night?"
Shots, he remembered a moment later. He and Quatre Winner, Trowa Barton and Chang Wufei had gone out after Heero's funeral and honored their fallen comrade with a 21 shot salute. Five shots each with one left standing for Heero. And, he regretfully recalled, he had taken most of Quatre's.
The details were fuzzy, but the reality was not. Heero was dead. And at the funeral, Lady Une had approached him and asked him to take over Heero's job. Head bodyguard for the ESUN President, Relena Peacecraft. He had not accepted or declined the offer. Last night had been about remembering. Today was a good enough day to start moving on.
Running a hand down his stubbled face, Duo attempted standing. The long, unbraided strands of his hair fell over his shoulders. He couldn't do it until the world stopped spinning.
"You never could hold your liquor."
His head shot up. The voice, so low and even, with just the sharpest tint of insult, no longer belonged in the world. It had been removed by a single sniper bullet. But as he blinked the sleep out of his eyes, Duo had to adjust every piece of that logic. Because in the corner of the room, Heero Yuy stood, dressed in his Preventer uniform, watching his hangover without sympathy.
"What...the fuck."
It was not a question, but Heero answered just the same. "No, you're not crazy. Not anymore than normal, that is. It's me."
"Shit." Duo shook his head. "Look, I know you didn't really like me. But why'd you have to come back just to haunt me?"
"This will surprise you, Maxwell. But my being here has very little to do with you."
After a moment of struggling, Duo rose to his feet and managed to stay there. "When I sober up all the way, are you still gonna be here?"
"Yes." Heero stepped forwards. He didn't even appear like a ghost, or at least not how Duo had always envisioned a ghost. He seemed fairly solid with his normal coloring. Somehow, Duo imagined he would have had an easier time accepting everything had he been able to see through his old friend. "I need you to do something for me."
Duo frowned. "What?"
Heero replied just as he would have when he was alive: straight-faced and serious. "I need to borrow your body for two days."
****
To Be Continued
Author's Notes: Thanks for the feedback;) I never mean to be hard on Heero; he's my favorite pilot. He even outranks Duo on my list. We always hurt the ones we love.
****
Any Lucky Penny
by Kristen Elizabeth
****
"What?" Heero shook his head. "I'm..."
"Dead. You were shot by a sniper hoping to assassinate the President. I'm sorry to have to tell you, Heero Yuy...but you didn't make it."
The words were so matter-of-fact that Heero took a step backwards. "Relena..."
"Oh, she's fine. Well...safe, anyway." The girl paused. "Would you like to see her?"
"I...Relena..."
"I'll take that as a yes." With her thumb and forefinger pinched together, she drew up a viewing panel out of the air around them as though she were pulling up a projector screen. "Here." A moment later, a picture materialized.
Heero moved forward. It was Relena, dressed in all black and seated before an open grave. A handkerchief was pressed to her mouth as she stared at the shiny coffin suspended over the deep, freshly dug hole. Her slender shoulders shook and there were horrible dark circles underneath her eyes.
"She blames herself," the girl spoke up. "She hasn't slept or eaten since it happened."
His chest began to hurt again. "How long have...has it been since..."
"Four days."
"Four days," he repeated. "I don't....I can't believe it!" He turned away from the image of Relena. "I can't be dead. I have to protect her!"
The girl gave him a long look. "There are others who can do that. She is constantly surrounded by people now. Besides...they did catch the man who did this. Don't worry about Relena."
"I don't understand," Heero began again, his voice taking on a note of desperation.
"All right, let me try to explain it all again." Speaking well beyond her years, the girl continued, "Four days ago you were shot straight through the heart in a fouled assassination attempt on Relena's life. It was relatively painless and you died almost instantly, although she made them try for nearly an hour to revive you."
He pressed a hand to the center of his torso. "It wasn't painless..."
"It wasn't for me either." She smiled. "But forgetting that for the moment, you are dead."
"I'm dead..." The reality was slow to sink in, but there seemed no other explanation for his current circumstances. "I'm dead."
The little girl nodded once. "And now you're here."
His head throbbed. "Where's here?"
"The Midway," the girl replied.
"Heaven?" he asked, doubtfully. When she shook her head, he tried again. "Hell?"
"It's neither and both."
Heero rubbed his forehead with the back of his hand. "Well, that clears it up for me."
"The Midway is where we go when we leave our life too soon," she explained.
"Don't we all die when we're supposed to?"
"Yes." She smiled again. "And no. When I say too soon, I mean when we die with unfinished business. You have died too soon, Heero Yuy. And I'm here to help you."
Heero blinked several times. "Unfinished..." Then he stopped cold. "Relena." The girl nodded. "But how can I....what do I need to do to..."
"Unless you want to stay here alone forever..." She gestured to the expanse of white emptiness. "You have to finish your business."
He licked his lower lip and after a moment, turned back to the viewing panel. The scene had changed; time moved differently in the Midway, apparently. It was now night, and Relena was curled up in her bed, clutching her sheets up to her chin, quaking in the throes of a nightmare. "Relena!" he called out to her image. "I'm here, Relena. Can you hear me?"
"Of course she can't," the girl scolded. "She's on Earth; we're in the Midway."
"Then..." Heero balled up his fists. "I don't understand any of this. I'm not even sure I really believe it. You said you were sent to help me?" She nodded again. "Then quit talking in riddles and help me."
After studying him for a minute, the girl lifted her chin. "I can see why you need this. You loved her very much, didn't you?" He looked away. "And you never told her."
"I was going to," Heero said quietly. "I just needed...more time."
"Time is something you really don't have anymore," she stated without any remorse. "Or...you shouldn't, at least."
He frowned. "What do you mean by that?"
"I wasn't sent here to smooth your transition into the afterlife, Heero Yuy." The little girl moved closer to him. "I've come here to offer you this one last chance to escape the Midway."
"More riddles," Heero sighed.
The girl gave him a wry smile. "I'll state it quite plainly then. There is a way for you to return to Earth and finish your business." His eyes lit up. "I assume you'll be taking it then?"
"I need to tell Relena..." He paused, trying to keep his sudden excitement in check. "I need to hold her and tell her....everything." His gaze turned back to the image of her. She was waking up now and the morning tears that coursed down her cheeks were painful to watch. Knowing that he would soon be able to wipe them away...Heero had to smile.
After another moment, the girl continued. "There is a catch."
His smile faltered. "Whatever it is...I can deal with it."
"Are you sure?" When he nodded, she bobbed her own head. "Very well then."
A long moment passed. On the screen, Relena managed to pull herself out of bed. The gentleman in Heero forced his gaze away when she began to undress. "Well...what's the catch?" he demanded.
The girl considered him for a second. "Returning to Earth and being able to walk amongst the living is not as simple as I might have made it sound." She hesitated. "You will need a host."
"A host?"
"A body," she clarified. "A living human being who is willing to give up their physical form to your spirit."
Heero thought about this for a moment. "But...if I'm in their body, how will Relena know that I'm...."
"She won't." The silence that followed was thick and cold. "I'm not an angel, Heero Yuy. I'm here because you killed me. Accidently, but I'm dead just the same. I have been for a very long time. And because you killed me, it's my job...and somewhat of my entitlement...to be here with you during this time. As you will get to do for your killer someday."
His mind clouded with confusion, Heero pressed further. "She'll only see..."
"The host. Whoever that might be. This is your challenge. To do what you should have done while you were alive in a body other than your own. Neither heaven, nor hell. The Midway."
"So...this is a punishment."
"Only if you choose to think of it like that." The girl's lips curled up pleasantly. "You'll have two Earth days."
"Two days?! That's not...it's not enough time! Not if she can't see that it's me! And it's not..." His voice gave way for an extended beat. "It's not enough time with her."
The little girl clasped her hands together. "You were given six years with her, Heero Yuy. It is no one's fault but your own that now you have only two days to do what could have easily been done then." She looked back at the screen. Relena was dressed now and being escorted by a team of no less than four Preventers out the door of her mansion and into her limousine. "Choose your host wisely. He or she is your last chance."
Heero watched Relena in the backseat of her limo. Her eyes were closed, but she was not sleeping. It looked like it was too much of an effort for her to even keep them open. "I can't let her blame herself anymore," he said out loud. His head swung back to the little girl. "Tell me what I need to do to contact a host."
"You've chosen one then?"
He nodded. "I just hope he's feeling generous."
****
"Aww...fuck." Bending over at the waist as he sat on the edge of his horribly rumpled bed, Duo Maxwell held his head between his hands to keep his brains from exploding. "What the fuck did I drink last night?"
Shots, he remembered a moment later. He and Quatre Winner, Trowa Barton and Chang Wufei had gone out after Heero's funeral and honored their fallen comrade with a 21 shot salute. Five shots each with one left standing for Heero. And, he regretfully recalled, he had taken most of Quatre's.
The details were fuzzy, but the reality was not. Heero was dead. And at the funeral, Lady Une had approached him and asked him to take over Heero's job. Head bodyguard for the ESUN President, Relena Peacecraft. He had not accepted or declined the offer. Last night had been about remembering. Today was a good enough day to start moving on.
Running a hand down his stubbled face, Duo attempted standing. The long, unbraided strands of his hair fell over his shoulders. He couldn't do it until the world stopped spinning.
"You never could hold your liquor."
His head shot up. The voice, so low and even, with just the sharpest tint of insult, no longer belonged in the world. It had been removed by a single sniper bullet. But as he blinked the sleep out of his eyes, Duo had to adjust every piece of that logic. Because in the corner of the room, Heero Yuy stood, dressed in his Preventer uniform, watching his hangover without sympathy.
"What...the fuck."
It was not a question, but Heero answered just the same. "No, you're not crazy. Not anymore than normal, that is. It's me."
"Shit." Duo shook his head. "Look, I know you didn't really like me. But why'd you have to come back just to haunt me?"
"This will surprise you, Maxwell. But my being here has very little to do with you."
After a moment of struggling, Duo rose to his feet and managed to stay there. "When I sober up all the way, are you still gonna be here?"
"Yes." Heero stepped forwards. He didn't even appear like a ghost, or at least not how Duo had always envisioned a ghost. He seemed fairly solid with his normal coloring. Somehow, Duo imagined he would have had an easier time accepting everything had he been able to see through his old friend. "I need you to do something for me."
Duo frowned. "What?"
Heero replied just as he would have when he was alive: straight-faced and serious. "I need to borrow your body for two days."
****
To Be Continued