Chapter 1
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Quatre stepped out onto the balcony from his office. Located on the top floor of the 150-story building owned by Winner Enterprises--by far the largest building in the sector and indeed the entire colony-- it gave an unobstructed view as far as the eye could see of the entire colony. He stared up at the artificially clear sky, flawed only by its absolute perfection. Rain was never forecast, only scheduled. Day became night with the flick of an automated switch. So to say Quatre stepped outside for a breath of fresh air would be completely false, for, as with everything else, the air was neither fresh nor natural. No, Quatre stepped outside simply to escape the confines of his office.
Oh sure, he may have wanted some fresh air, who wouldn't? But wishing for things that can't be is no way to live your life. So instead he stood outside and enjoyed the heat and light reflected off the artificial sky and mentally prepared himself for his next meeting.
Or that's what he would have done had an owl not flown down and landed right in front of him on the balcony railing. That in of itself was enough to shake Quatre from his meditation, but that was not the only thing about the situation that struck Quatre as odd. This was a real live bird in a place where very few things truly natural could or would ever live.
"Quatre stared at the bird and was quite sure it stared back with a look that plainly stated, 'What are *you* staring at?' Quatre blinked, he could feel the bird becoming impatient with him. And since when did birds become impatient?
The large snowy bird hooted in quite an annoyed tone and stuck out its left leg.
Quatre's eyes traveled down to the bird's limb where he now could obviously see had an envelope attached. The bird seemed to convey that he very much wanted the envelope removed. Quatre stared the bird for a few minutes as he let it sink in exactly how well the bird seemed to communicate. At this point, Quatre got the feeling that the bird was assessing his intelligence and was finding it somewhere well below average.
He carefully reached out and untied the envelope from the owl's leg, not wanting to hurt what was, undoubtedly, an extremely rare animal. He turned the envelope over in his hand and read the script on the front.
Mr. Quatre Raberba Winner
Balcony, 150th floor
Winner Enterprises
Colony X188991, L4, 198 A.C. [After Colony]
Quatre looked up at the owl.
It stared blankly back at him.
Quatre looked at the writing on the envelope again.
He looked back at the owl who was now cocking its head to the side.
He looked back at the envelope.
Quatre looked back up at the owl again only to see a look that clearly said, "What are you waiting for? Open it.'
So he did.
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Dear Mr. Winner,
We are pleased to inform you have been selected to participate in an 'Elective Studies' course now being offered at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Hogsmeade, England, 1997 O.E.C. [Old Earth Calendar]
Along with letter we have sent you an acceptance gift. If you choose not to enroll please return this letter and the gift to Einstein (the owl) and we will not bother you again.
Yours sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster
Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards
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Quatre looked up from the letter, and, sure enough on the right leg of the owl was a small package, just the right size to fit comfortably in his hand. Surely it wouldn't hurt just to see what was in the box?
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Thrust. Turn. Kick. Crouch. Strike. Pivot. Advance. Duck. Repeat.
Wufei repeated the exercises fourteen more times before stopping. He walked over to the red blanket he had laid out earlier in the grass and sat cross-legged in the center of it. He was on the highest hill in the center of a very large, grassy clearing. From where he sat he could take in all that was around him and let it flow through him and bring him to a deeper calm.
Much to the surprise of his fellow pilots, Wufei was quite content with his decision to live on earth. He found a home very near where his ancient ancestors were rumored to have once lived. He could feel their spirits around him and knew that they were also content with his decision.
He enjoyed these peaceful moments now. Much of his work with Preventers kept his memories of the war from fading away. This was good, because it also reminded him not to repeat his own past mistakes. But here on the undisturbed hillside, he could let himself be at peace. The wind blew along the grassy floor carrying the calming scent of violets and dandelions. Birds chirped quietly from the woods that surrounded the edge of the vast clearing.
And at that moment, breaking through the calm was a very loud, obnoxious screeching.
Wufei opened his eyes to look straight into the face of one very annoyed looking owl. One very ugly, very annoyed looking owl.
The owl glared.
"Go away." Wufei stated, waving his hand in an equally annoyed dismissal. That caused the owl to let out another earsplitting screech and flap its wings quite animatedly.
"Get away from here you idiot bird!" Wufei told the bird, menacingly. This was apparently the wrong thing to say, as the bird was now bouncing and screeching as it made its way towards Wufei with a flurry of claws and feathers. Wufei made a quick, instinctive strike with his hand in order to defend against the owl's oncoming claws. Unfortunately he succeeded, knocking the bird out of the air and directly into his lap.
Trying to pry the furious ball of flapping wings and claws off himself, Wufei grabbed on what felt like a small package and some very thick paper. With a calculated tug he removed them from the demonic fowl which promptly flew off his lap and landed several feet away, still glaring.
He looked down at the objects in his hands. One was a small wrapped package and the other appeared to be a letter. On the letter it very clearly stated:
Chang Wufei
Red Blanket, Highest Hill
Chang Family Ancestral Grounds
Old China, Earth, 198 A.C. [After Colony]
He looked over at the bird, which was still staring at him, and giving an annoyed 'hoot' every now and again.
With a great deal of caution he opened the letter.
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Mr. Chang,
We are pleased to inform that you have been selected to participate in an 'Elective Studies' course now being offered at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Hogsmeade, England, 1997 O.E.C. [Old Earth Calendar]
Along with this letter we have sent you an acceptance gift. If you choose not to enroll please return the letter and gift to Brutus (the owl) and we will not bother you again.
Yours sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster
Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards
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Wufei looked up from the letter and back at Brutus who was now preening himself, "Brutus?" Wufei asked with a mixture of sarcasm and disbelief. "This has to be one of Maxwell's sick jokes."
He looked at the box he had yet to open. He picked it up and looked for some type of sign that would reveal what calamity lay inside. He weighed the pros and cons of opening it here or taking it back to the house. Knowing Maxwell it was probably set to make a very large mess.
'Might as well open it here…' Wufei thought to himself with resignation. 'How bad could it be?'
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Trowa sat at a lone table on the patio of a small coffee house. He often sat in this particular spot on his breaks, since the coffee shop was part of the large bookstore in which he worked. He found it relaxing to sit outside with a book and cup of coffee and think about nothing except the great adventures each book took him on. Some might find it surprising a Gundam pilot could so easily enjoy a fiction novel whose passages were far less exciting than his own for too recent personal history. However, Trowa enjoyed the chance to escape the memories of his sordid past for a while and lose himself instead in fantasy world's adventure for a time. Which was, in fact, why he choose to work in a bookstore. That, and it kept him conveniently close to his boyfriend.
Indeed, it was exactly the right job for him
So, he was quite content to sit on the patio with his book and coffee and let life quietly pass him by. People came and went, their chatter filling the air with tell tale signs of their world moving on. A few stray cats would find Trowa and weave their way between the chair legs and his own long, lanky legs, knowing he was always good for a small treat.
So, when a small owl swooped down from the sky and perched atop his book, disrupting this tranquil setting, he was, to say the least, a bit startled. He was doubly surprised, as there were *no* birds living on L4, or any other Space Colony, for that matter. Birds were too hazardous to the intricate workings of the Space Colonies. Their flying and nesting could easily upset the mechanical workings of the colonies weather and lighting systems. It was because of this that anti-bird laws were strictly monitored and enforced.
Trowa stared with no small amount of curiosity at the bird; it was quite small compared to pictures of barn and snowy owls he had seen, just barely the size of the full-grown falcon he had once seen on Earth. It actually looked very similar to that falcon, with colorings of dark browns and muted grays, and very sharp, intelligent eyes. It was hard to picture such a fiercely regal looking creature as a colony-wide hazard.
Reaching into a pocket, Trowa pulled out some cracker he usually gave to the stray cats, and offered it to the small fowl. The bird eagerly accepted, obviously famished from whatever trek it was on. "Now, what is a fine creature such as yourself doing here?" Trowa quietly asked the diminutive bird of prey.
Delighted with such lavish compliments, the owl hooted happily as it stuck its left leg out. Carefully tied to his leg was a cream colored envelope.
"Well, I will need to put my book down if you expect me to take that off," Trowa explained to the bird, just as he would to anyone else.
The bird jumped down to the table and again held out its leg for Trowa. Trowa placed his book on the table beside the owl and then gently untied the envelope. Once the envelope was free, Trowa eyed the writing on it.
Mr. Trowa Barton
Patio table farthest from view
Full Moon Coffee House
Colony X188991, L4, 198 A.C. [After Colony]
By now, Trowa was quite baffled. Who, on Earth, would send him a letter by owl? Who , *anywhere*, would send *anyone* a letter by owl? He looked up at the owl as if asking what he should do next. And the owl, being ever so understanding, hooted softly at him.
"Well I suppose that means I should open it and see. You don't look like the type of bird to deliver anything dangerous."
The owl hooted proudly at such a praising assessment of his character, while Trowa carefully opened the letter and read.
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Mr. Barton,
We are pleased to inform you have been selected to participate in an 'Elective Studies' course now being offered at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Hogsmeade, England, 1997 O.E.C. [Old Earth Calendar]
Along with the letter we have sent you an acceptance gift. If you choose not to enroll please return this letter and the gift to Socrates (the owl) and we will not bother you again.
Yours sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster
Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards
~~~~~~~~~
Trowa looked up at the owl assessing, as if trying to validate the unbelievably of the letter with the undeniable proof of the bird in front of him.
"Well, I might as well have a look at this acceptance gift. Come here, and let me have a look."
The owl seemed to nod his head in approval as he stuck out his other leg in order to present the small package.
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"Oh for cripes sake Heero!!! Quit playing with my hair! I'm trying to wallow in the afterglow here!"
Duo moved restlessly amongst the sea of sheets in search of a still cool corner of linen to place against his sweat-sheened skin. His hair was free of its notorious braid and instead circled his head like waves of golden chestnut fire. Fire that was currently being tugged on.
Duo swatted a hand absently behind him, not really wanting to move more than necessary, to knock away Heero's fondling hands. He missed, but the annoying tugs seemed to have stopped.
He lay quietly in the bed he shared with Heero, enjoying the warm ripple of pleasure that seemed to still vibrate through his blood. He was perfectly content to stay here for a very long---'OW!'
"Fuck me Heero! That HURT! What the hell are you doing?" Duo exclaimed with no small amount of irritation as he whipped his head around to glare at his lover. Only to look straight into the eyes of one very large owl.
"Holy Mother of FUCK!" Duo shrieked as he attempted to scramble backwards away from the freakish apparition. However, the once docile sheets now appeared to have other ideas and were holding him captive. Duo elected to roll away in an effort to loose the sheets and put more distance between him and the massive bird, only to remember belatedly that he was already near the edge of the bed from his earlier quest for cooler sheets. He landed with a 'thud' on the floor. At that point, the sheets deemed it time to release him. Damn sheets.
The owl, however, apparently had other plans and flapped over to land on right on top of Duo's tangled nest of hair.
"Owowowowow! Fucking bird! Get off me!" Duo howled in pain as the owl's talons scratched his scalp. The owl simply ignored his pleas and flapped his wings furiously, which both lightened the load on Duo's head and allowed him to stick his letter-clad leg in Duo's face.
"What the hell?!?" Duo grabbed the leg and yanked the letter off. The owl immediately took leave of Duo's head but not before dropping a small package into Duo's lap. Much to Duo's disgust the owl only went as far at the dresser before landing and turning to look back at Duo pointedly.
Heero chose that moment to walk back into the bedroom, with a towel hung loosely around his waist and still damp, obviously straight from taking a shower. He looked questioningly at the disheveled pile of sheets and naked boyfriend that was on the floor, "Duo?"
"Don't look at me! That demonic bird just assaulted me!" Duo wailed, pointing furiously at the large bird on the dresser, except now there were two birds. Now, sitting next to the large owl, in obvious discomfort, was a much smaller owl. The objects tied to the owl's feet were just barely smaller than the owl itself. It was almost comical to watch the bird struggle just to stay upright against the obvious burden. Heero calmly walked over to the small bird and removed the letter and package. He looked down at the first object, a cream colored envelope, and the other a small plainly wrapped box. On the envelope he could clearly read the writing.
Mr. Heero Yuy
Shared bedroom with Mr. Duo Maxwell
Undisclosed location
Colony X988542, L1, 197 A.C. [After Colony]
Duo at the very same moment was reading the letter he had been assaulted with.
Mr. Duo Maxwell
Shared bedroom with Mr. Heero Yuy
Undisclosed location
Colony X988542, L1, 197 A.C. [After Colony]
"It's for me!" Duo exclaimed, ignoring the letter and quickly ripping the paper off the box. He lifted the lid and peered inside. "Oooooh Heero! Look! Look at this!" he said as he reached inside the box.
"BAKA!" Heero shouted reaching out for Duo's hand to knock it away.
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