Seaside Laboratory/Royal Academy
"This is the last day before your vacation," announced Sally Po to the faces turned to her. "Please, do not force me to come to the academy or you will not be allowed to leave the premises next week."
Trynity glanced at the others. Most were leaving; to what destination she did not know. Trowa, she did know, would be performing with the circus with Catherine. A likely pair of clowns! Trowa was the only clown who could be noted for bringing on clinical depression. Tickets to his show were stamped with a discount coupon for Valium.
Wherever they were all going, she could see by the anxious looks on their faces that they would be on their best behavior at school today. Trynity had nowhere to go.
The limousine ride was silent until Quatre began to practice reading from the poem he had written for Miss Drivel's literature class. His voice rose and fell as he put intense emotion in his lines about Dorothy and Hilde. A trio of dopes! thought Trynity. What kind of boy adored Dorothy Catalonia? What did she see in Quatre Raberba Winner? Why would Hilde prefer him to Duo Maxwell?
Trynity shifted uncomfortably. Did she really have that thought? She glanced at Duo and saw that he was writing, obviously stealing lines from Quatre. Was he writing about Hilde? She squirmed again, the thought making her stomach roll. Why should that bother her? Perhaps Hilde was getting tired of sharing Quatre and wanted Duo back. Trynity purposely turned away from Duo to look out the window.
Sitting next to her, Wufei hissed, "Stop moving around."
Gritting her teeth, she turned to look at him. Quatre stopped reading. Duo stopped writing. Trowa and Heero leaned closer as if anticipating action. Trynity could feel Wufei tense.
"The driver might stop," remarked Heero with a smirk.
"If we pitch in some money, he won't talk," added Trowa, the expert on silence.
Trynity would be willing to sacrifice her allowance.
Wufei dug into his pocket and withdrew money.
They glared at each other. She despised Chang Wufei. He felt the same for her.
"My money is on Miss Stryfe," stated Heero.
"Hey!" Duo laughed. "I put my money on Sally Po. She will find out about it when the hospital calls to inform her that Wufei has internal injuries."
Wufei started to lunge at Duo, but Quatre threw himself to his knees between them, holding out his arms to keep them apart.
"Stop this! We cannot afford to anger Sally again."
Trynity sat back disappointed. Another time, Chang Wufei, she promised with her eyes.
"Good!" declared Quatre. "Now, we have more important matters to settle. The cook has the night off for some family emergency, and Sally is too busy. One of us has to prepare the meal tonight."
"Any takers?" asked Duo with a chuckle.
"There is only one way to settle this," declared Trowa.
Trynity turned away in disgust. Their answer to everything! Rock, Paper, Scissors. The contest was still going on when the limo arrived at school. Heero, Trowa and Quatre had been eliminated. Now only Wufei and Duo remained. They stared each other in the eye. Trynity looked at the determination on Duo's face. Was he that stupid? She pushed herself from the seat intending to get out, but Wufei seized her arm.
"This is foolish! The kitchen is a woman's place!"
"Good point!" Duo hopped out of the limo.
Trynity jerked her arm from Wufei. Their narrowed eyes clashed.
"What is the matter, Miss Stryfe? Is this a task to which you are unequal?"
Trowa whistled between his teeth.
Heero announced, "Miss Stryfe, three; Chang Wufei; three."
Duo poked his head back in the car. "Need some help getting out, Wufei?"
Trynity pushed past them both. The group was waiting for her response.
"Please, Trynity!" begged Quatre. "If Duo cooks, we will be eating Spaghetti-Os."
"Hey, what's wrong with Chef Boyardee?" Duo was pouting.
Dolts! Did they think cooking was a natural ability for females? But Trynity gave them a half-smile and said, "I would be delighted to prepare you a meal." She had no intention of cooking anything edible for them.
During the morning assembly, Relena Peacecraft gave a long speech about the upcoming Stardust Ball to be held at the Cinq Kingdom Conservatory. Trynity stole a glance at Duo during her speech and was annoyed to see Hilde talking to him in earnest. Whatever they discussed was none of her business. She had more important things to think about than Duo Maxwell's lovelife.
Last night she received a call from the coalition demanding data on Wing Gundam Zero. Trynity spent most of the night in her room trying to access files about the gundam. Not surprisingly, most files had been purged, and only eyewitness accounts remained. She didn't like the idea of entering a battle blind. She would never forget the near terror she felt when that ghastly Deathscythe had charged. Shadowhawk had been blind then, too. Her only advantage would be the cloak in a battle with Wing Zero, but even then she could not count on the sensors in the other gundam to remain oblivious to the energy pulses that rendered it invisible. The bit of conversation she had overheard during Sally Po's phone call also put her on edge. Wing Zero would be prepared for a confrontation.
During Physics class, Trynity sat patiently through part of Dr. Plume's lecture, but when he started droning about outdated theories already proven false; she could not keep silent. She raised her hand and had every intention of correcting his mistakes, but Dr. Plume ignored her. She frowned and kept her hand in the air. Plume looked away. This was not a fight she was going to lose!
Duo felt something hit his head. Turning, he saw Trowa folding another paper airplane, and Heero was designing a catapult with his pencil and a rubberband. They had guts! Old featherbrain didn't put up with any crap in his classroom. So what were they doing? He turned to look at the teacher. Dr. Plume seemed to be lecturing to a far window, his back to Trynity who sat motionless, her hand raised.
"Let the party begin!" Duo murmured. He began to tear small strips of paper which he chewed into finely designed bullets, then hocked a few at Quatre who was putting the finishing touches to his masterpiece poem by drawing and coloring a border on the paper.
Quatre turned to glare at him, glanced at Plume, then turned to spray spit through his teeth across the aisle.
As Duo was wiping his cheek, he shoved a couple of strips of paper in his mouth to prepare a very special, very juicy treat for Quatre Raberba Winner. Out the corner of his eye he saw Wufei folding a paper into his famed triangle of death. Duo knew it would hurt like hell anyone it hit. Wufei was watching Trynity, so Duo didn't have to think too hard about who the intended victim was. He turned to see Trowa launch his plane in the air, and Heero shot it down. Heero mouthed the words; "Mission accomplished" and the two laughed silently and gave a high five.
Duo was laughing to himself, then turned to spew the spit wad in his mouth across the aisle. It splattered on Quatre's paper. Quatre took his marker in his hand like a knife and raised it. Duo ducked.
"Mr. Winner, do you have a question?"
Plume noticed him! Duo bit his lip to keep from laughing.
Quatre cleared his throat. "Dr. Plume," he began, searching for words. "Would it be possible for you to please explain to us again that part about negative and positive ions. I didn't understand."
"Certainly!"
Trynity had not put her hand down. Plume purposely turned away as if getting inspiration by staring at a far object on his bookshelf. Duo took the opportunity to spit another monster wad at Quatre just as Wufei flung his triangle of death. Duo could swear he heard it whistle. Everyone held his or her breath. Duo cringed as it sliced through the air toward Trynity Stryfe. She was going to be hurting!
Suddenly Trynity turned and caught the projectile in her upraised hand. Damn! She was good! No! God no! She was returning fire! Duo barely had time to bend back to avoid the deadly points as it flew past his nose. Wufei dived to the floor. Another student screamed in pain and dropped his head on the desk. Innocent bystander!
Plume stopped talking. He seemed to come to his senses. Now he surveyed the damage to his classroom with wide eyes. Wadded paper littered the floor; flecks of white decorated the chalkboard, wall and viewing screen. Pencils hung from the foam tiles of the ceiling and one dropped as he stared open-mouthed. There were eraser pieces everywhere. Someone had drawn not a bad picture of Dr. Plume wearing a short dress and spiked heels and stuck it on the table of elements chart.
"What the hell is going on here?" He shouted.
Trynity's hand was still in the air.
Dr. Plume looked at her. "Miss Stryfe?"
She took a breath. "To begin with, Dr. Plume, the theories you began your lecture with were proven wrong over twenty years ago. In the second place, you are mistaken when you…"
"Miss Stryfe! I have had quite enough! Go to the headmaster's office immediately."
As she picked up her books, Duo felt a little guilty. She had barely done anything! An honorable man would stand up to defend her. Duo stayed in his seat.
Trynity did not reappear until ten minutes into Literature class while Heero was boring everyone with his poem about birds of prey. Mrs. Drivel told Trynity to remain standing to read hers. Duo was surprised that it was similar to Heero's, and he wondered how Heero got his hands on Trynity's paper to copy. That reminded him that his math assignment wasn't done. When it came to him, Duo managed to read the short poem he wrote in the limo although he stumbled over some of the words that had been poorly written because of the jostling between Wufei and Trynity. Mrs. Drivel was not impressed. Nor was she stunned when Wufei read his epic in monotone. He almost put everyone to sleep. Everyone except Quatre.
There was a pleasant moment of silence when Wufei finished until Quatre awoke everyone. "Mrs. Drivel! May I read now?"
Mrs. Drivel yawned, rubbed her eyes and looked from her watch to the clock. Please, God, if you are listening, thought Duo, let the bell ring now! Mrs. Drivel didn't want to hear from Quatre either. "I believe Mr. Barton has yet to read."
Trowa stood.
There was a long moment of silence.
Quatre raised his hand.
Mrs. Drivel glared at him. "We shall give Mr. Barton a chance."
Everyone looked at Trowa.
The silence stretched. Mrs. Drivel smiled and looked at her watch.
Duo noted that Mrs. Drivel had suddenly become his favorite teacher!
Quatre bolted out of his seat. "My poem is entitled, A Rose and A Lily." He looked first at Dorothy who smiled smugly, then to Hilde who gazed adoringly at him.
Mrs. Drivel cleared her throat and started to remind Quatre that Trowa had not read yet, but Quatre forged ahead with his poem. Trowa sank back into his seat. Mrs. Drivel began to rub her temples.
As Quatre began to read about his two flowers, Duo glanced at Trynity. What flower was she? A thistle. Definitely a thistle. Why did he just have that thought? Why was he comparing Trynity to a flower? As Quatre droned on about the attributes of his rose, Duo tried desperately not to look at Miss Stryfe. But that orange hair of hers was like a beacon. Couldn't she do something with it? Why was it always so tangled! Quatre was describing his lily, but Duo didn't hear a word. Those damn corkscrew curls! They were like snakes! No, they weren't, he argued with himself. They were like vines. The ones that rested against her cheeks were like delicate vines clinging to an ivory wall.
"Oh my God!" Duo picked up his books and rushed out of the room.
Trynity watched him go and wished she could follow. No doubt he would be vomiting that waffle he had for breakfast. Trynity felt her own breakfast ready to come up, an aftereffect of listening to Quatre's nauseating sonnet dedicated to a couple of stupid flowers. He was arguing that a rose and lily could co-exist side by side. Not so, Mr. Greenjeans! The rose would spread out and choke the delicate lily. To prove her point, she looked at Dorothy Catalonia and saw her sneering at Hilde. Hilde was oblivious. It was only a matter of time before Dorothy choked off Hilde and put an end to their ridiculous menage a trois.
Did Hilde already realize it? Did her little conversation during assembly have something to do with their previous relationship? If Hilde wanted Duo to escort her to the Stardust Ball, Trynity would gladly step aside! She hadn't really wanted to go! She had only agreed to go because she didn't want to disappoint Sally, and Duo did ask. Sally had been so pleased. But the dress could be returned. Trynity hadn't taken off the price tags.
The teacher cleared her throat. "Miss Stryfe, do you need a tissue?"
All heads were turned to her, and she was mortified to realize her cheeks were wet with tears.
Mrs. Drivel dropped a few tissues on her desk.
"I don't know how that self-serving sorry excuse for a sonnet – alliteration my dear Mr. Winner, you may wish to use some sort of style the next time you try to persuade those two flowers to stay in your garden – now where was I? Oh yes, lousy poetry! Let me see, two ridiculous odes to fierce birds soaring the skies and ripping their prey to shreds, a short verse about reaping wheat – Mr. Maxwell, just what do you know about…Where is Mr. Maxwell? Gone! No surprise! Three weeks is a record for him! – and an epic about a fire-breathing dragon with two heads."
She put her hands on her desk and leaned forward to glare at them. "Class, did I not assign a poem about something you know about, something your are familiar with, something with which you have intimate knowledge?"
"I'll bet Quatre has intimate knowledge of his rose and lily," commented Trowa.
"Mr. Barton! I will assume that is the extent of your poetry for the day. In a nutshell, all your poetry affects me like the sweet scent of freshly spread manure on a hot day on that wheat field Mr. Maxwell so briefly described earlier. I expect you all to write another poem during your vacation." She ignored the groans. "Please keep it simple, Mr. Winner! Mr. Barton, I will expect more out of you next time you read than the one-liner that entertained us today."
When the bell rang, Trynity walked straight to the Math classroom as the others drifted together: Relena to Heero, Catherine to Trowa, Quatre to Dorothy, Hilde to Quatre. Trynity left them all behind. Deep inside she wasn't surprised to see Duo waiting by the math door. He looked nervous. Trynity clutched the damp tissues in her hand. She wasn't going to cry!
Duo stopped her. "Trynity, can I talk to you?" He glanced around and Trynity looked back to see Hilde watching them as she hung on Quatre's arm.
Trynity took a deep breath and faced him. "I know what you want."
"You do?" He seemed surprised.
"I don't have a problem with it." There, she said it without watering eyes.
Duo sighed with relief. "I didn't think you would understand." He held out his hand and grinned.
Did he expect her to shake on it? She stared at his hand for a moment, then looked at his grinning face. "You don't have to polite to me anymore. I am not going to the dance with you, so stop patronizing me." She pushed past him.
Duo scratched his head as he watched her take her seat. Wufei was suddenly at his side.
"Smooth move, Maxwell. Don't expect me to take her to the Stardust Ball!"
Relena glared at him as she passed him. Heero and Trowa were smirking. What just happened? Duo quickly took his seat before the bell rang, and he tried to get Trynity's attention.
Relena leaned over to him. "You are so dead if you don't take Trynity Stryfe to the ball!" she whispered furiously.
Duo saw Trynity watching them. She was two rows away, so he couldn't whisper to her. Miss Dimster was shuffling her papers, so Duo inched off his seat and walked to the pencil sharpener. A pin could have been heard and Miss Dimster nervously reached for Master Cuddles. Silence like this in Math class could lead to only one thing, but Duo wasn't planning to cause trouble today.
Quatre nudged Trynity to get her to move, then quickly moved when her pencil thrust out. He managed to avoid the sharp tip. Trynity stayed stubbornly in her seat so there would be no meeting at the pencil sharpener. Relena spun to glare at Duo. He shrugged his shoulders.
Trowa, who had been silently watching the little drama, stood. The only thing he added to the silence was the anticipation that he might speak. No one really expected him to.
Miss Dimster looked at him.
"Miss Dimster, may I please hug Master Cuddles? I have had a difficult morning."
Miss Dimster was delighted. "Or course, Mr. Barton." She held out the worn teddy bear.
All eyes were on him, including Duo's until he noticed Heero nodding his head toward Trynity. Ah, decoy! Miss Dimster was still smiling as she now searched her paper-strewn desk, mumbling something about handing out corrected tests.
Trowa tossed the bear behind his back to Heero.
Duo ducked and crawled down the aisle to Trynity's desk. He squatted beside her desk.
"Why won't you go with me?"
Miss Dimster looked up. "Mr. Barton, where is Master Cuddles?"
"Right here, Miss Dimster!" Heero held up the teddy bear. "I have had a bad day too!"
Miss Dimster smiled. "Very well! That is what Master Cuddles is here for." She reached down to open her desk draw, but it was stuck. It usually was.
Trynity looked at Duo as she worked with her drawer. "You don't want to go with me!"
Heero tossed the bear to Wufei using a hook shot. It arced high and Wufei leapt to snatch it out of midair.
Miss Dimster finally opened the drawer and pulled out a pen. Her gaze went nervously to Heero and she seemed startled. "What have you done with Master Cuddles, Mr. Yuy?"
"I gave him to Chang Wufei."
Slowly she turned to Wufei. Now she seemed worried. "Mr. Wufei, can I trust you to take care of Master Cuddles?"
He nodded solemnly. "I protect the weak, Miss Dimster, and Master Cuddles is weak."
Miss Dimster smiled nervously and turned around to write the curve for the last test on the chalkboard.
Duo put his hand on Trynity's arm and she looked at him. "Hey, I didn't say anything about not wanting to go with you to the dance. We are still on, okay?" Her eyes seemed misty as she looked at him. God! Don't act like a girl now, Trynity Stryfe!
Wufei stood. Quatre ducked.
"Okay," said Trynity, and she smiled at Duo.
Damn! Not the smile! Duo wobbled to his feet just as Wufei fired. Master Cuddles hurtled through time and space until he bounced off Duo and hit Miss Dimster in the back.
The teacher turned quickly around. "Master Cuddles!" Miss Dimster fell to her knees and gently lifted the bear from the floor. One button eye was missing; the other was hanging by a couple of threads. Stuffing was falling out of its empty eye socket, and Miss Dimster was frantically pushing it back in as she moved her hand around under her desk searching for the missing eye. She was sniffling and sobbing. No one dared breathe. Miss Dimster was falling to pieces!
Suddenly there was an outburst of laughter, and Duo looked quickly at Trynity. Her head was on her desk buried in her arms and her shoulders were shaking as she giggled.
"Miss…Miss Stryfe!"
Trynity raised her head, and there were tears of laughter in her eyes. "Yes, Miss Dimster?" But she was still giggling.
Miss Dimster clutched the bear to her even as its grayish innards were oozing out. "Get out of my classroom! Go to Mr. Himmler's office immediately. I never want to see you again!" She turned her furious gaze to Duo who still stood stupidly in the middle of the aisle, incriminating himself. "And you!" she growled. "How dare you!" She held out the limp bear. The other button eye fell to the floor. "Look what you have done to Master Cuddles!"
Trynity paused at the door.
Duo scratched his head. "Does this mean Master Cuddles won't be forgiving me?"
Both he and Trynity ducked out the door and were laughing as Miss Dimster screeched. Suddenly the mutilated bear flew into the hall and hit Trynity square in the face. Her glasses fell to the floor. Duo scooped them up before they dashed away to the headmaster's office.
Trynity felt bad about leaving the sagging, ripped body of Master Cuddles lying in the hallway amid tufts of white and gray stuffing. But she was still giggling even as they entered the outer office where Mr. Himmler's secretary looked up.
Duo smiled at the woman.
She frowned. "Good morning, Mr. Maxwell." She looked at Trynity. "Back so soon, Miss Stryfe?"
Trynity sighed and whispered to Duo, "Sally Po is going to be angry with me."
"Me too," he whispered back.
She looked at his eyes. "What did you want outside the classroom?"
"I wanted to copy your math assignment."
Trynity felt foolish for what she had thought. Where was the fault of her logic? She had seen Hilde talking to Duo. Perhaps it meant nothing. Yet the sight had been annoying. More than annoying! Trynity wasn't jealous! She wasn't! It wasn't possible! Then why did she want to swing a flail at the other girl?
"My assignment wasn't done," she confessed.
Duo looked at her with surprise. "Miss Stryfe!"
She giggled.
"You dropped these." He was holding up the glasses. They were a little bent but not broken. Before she could reach out to take them, he raised them and perched them on her nose, carefully adjusting them around her ears. But they slipped to the end of her nose.
Trynity smiled at Duo.
There was a startled look in his blue eyes, then he pushed back her messy curls and cupped her face in his hands.
Trynity couldn't breathe. Her heart was pounding so fast she thought it would explode.
Duo leaned forward.
She closed her eyes.
"Mr. Maxwell! Just what do you think you are doing?" Trynity opened her eyes as Mr. Himmler seized Duo's arm and jerked him from the chair beside her. "Into my office now. And you!" He turned on Trynity like a ferocious beast. "I am surprised at you Miss Stryfe! You are a very intelligent girl! What is going through your head?"
Trynity was dazed. What was going through her head? Duo's big blue eyes, the sound of his voice, the warmth of his touch, his smile…
The headmaster snorted with disgust. "Come along, Miss Stryfe. Yet another call to Sally Po! At least her number is on speed dial."