Note: Ahaha! C'est moi! ^_^ How is everyone? Good, I hope. I hope
everyone had wonderful holidays and everything. HAPPY NEW YEAR! I don't
own Gundam Wing (still). The pairings are still 1+2+1, 3+4+3 5+S? Wufei
pairing may change. I might just have his love interest float around in
the story ^_^;; I would love a review! I hope you guys like this chapter!
Personally I think I didn't do very good job with it _
Prisoner of War 21
"Well?" the Chinese man demanded, scorching glare fixated on the girl, "What the Hell do you think you're doing here, onna?"
She fired a glare of her own, "The name's Sally. Surely you haven't forgotten?" she mocked with a snort. "And I'll explain everything when you let me come inside. It's freezing out here, you know."
By then Quatre had quickly skidded down the stairs in curiosity, Trowa followed in a calmer pace. "Sally!" he shouted in amazement as he stared frozenly at her unexpected appearance.
"Glad to see someone remembered," she smiled. "Hi, Quatre."
The blonde Arabic shook off the shock and scrambled to the door, "Come in. It's below freezing out there!" he ushered her in though he desperately wondered why she was here. 'For all we know this could be just a coincidence,' he bit his lip however even as they all congregated in the kitchen.
"Would you like some tea?" he offered hastily, already busying himself to make some.
"Yes, thank you," she accepted gratefully. "I suppose you're all wondering why I'm here . . ." she sighed. 'Can't back out now, Sally. Get a grip.'
Wufei openly released a loud snort. "Now, that you're inside. Care to explain yourself?"
Her confidence faltered, and Sally took a deep breath of air, "I know that you're Gundam pilots." Never once did smoky sapphire leave Wufei's face as she spoke.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Wufei denied roughly. "Us terrorists?"
Quatre froze in mid-pour, but he caught himself before the cool water spilled across the countertop. Wufei had glanced away, and Trowa had managed to keep his shock in check. Silence intruded the warm home, interrupted by Sally's sigh.
"I think you do," she murmured softly, chuckling slightly, massaging her temples. "You're last mission? Heero falling into that trap. Duo saved him the last minute . . ."
The pilots remained silent, "I saw it. I hacked into your files on accident, and I saw your vid screens. I was shocked that you are so young, and it definitely opened my eyes to a lot more than I expected. I didn't know what to feel -"
"Why are you here?" Quatre asked, voice slightly cracking. His grip on the fragile china tightened as he turned to face Sally. Stray bangs remained unbrushed from his eyes; she had hit a nerve.
Pleading blue lowered, "I'm sorry," she murmured with sincerity. "I have to warn you. Oz has some sort of plan - some kind of trap. I don't know what it is, but I don't want any of you to get hurt by it."
Impassive green peered at her quietly, "How do you expect us to trust you?" 'There's a great chance she's lying.'
"You'll just have to believe me," she reflected her pleading gaze back at the Chinese pilot. "I'm not lying." 'You have to believe me.'
"You're in a dangerous position, onna," his eyes flashed with a little less fire. "I could kill you right here and now."
"Well, yes," the blonde agreed, "but regardless of whether I die or not the plan is still there. In the end you'll see I was telling the complete and honest truth, but to be right wasn't why I came. I was hoping to do something right after seeing both sides."
"You haven't seen both sides," Wufei retorted. "You're an Oz soldier. That's why the man called you major in that inn, and one battle you saw will not change that fact."
She smiled faintly, "I never said that my official rank and side has changed. And I know I don't know very much about how you pilots live your lives, but I want this war to end just as much as you do - I want the right side to win."
"There are no winners in war," Quatre sighed softly. 'The more she talks the more sincere she seems. And we have to make a decision soon before Heero gets back because Allah knows what he'll do. He'll do whatever is necessary to complete the mission.'
"Search me," she suggested simply. "Search me, my things, the surrounding area. I've got nothing to hide and no place to go." She challenged them, sitting back in her chair.
Wufei tried to stare her down, obsidian shooting shards of ice at her. A minute passed - then two - then ten. "Oh for the love of Nataku!" he scowled as she smiled, victorious. "Barton and I will take care of this."
Mutely, Trowa stripped searched the girl without so much as a blink of an eye, and Wufei left to retrieve more equipment from the hangars. When the European seemed satisfied, the black-haired boy had returned, running a metal detector over her body. The thorough search ended fruitless, but all three pilots were relieved. Sally even found some relief of her own.
Trowa and Wufei proceeded to exit the home, but the green-eyed pilot shot one last look at Quatre before leaving.
"I'll look after Sally," the Arabic offered with a smile and a moment later the front door clicked shut.
The blonde pilot set down two steamy cups of herbal tea, accented with jasmine. "Thank you," Sally murmured softly. "I know it's hard to even give me this chance."
Quatre granted her a sweet smile in return and took a sip of tea, "You really do seem sincere . . . Even Wufei is somewhat convinced."
She grinned back, "But what about when Heero comes back? I don't think he'll be too happy about this. Might not live for very long," she mused more to herself than anyone else.
The Gundam pilot laughed, "I'm sure Duo will be able to drag him away until he's calmed down. Anyway, Trowa already contacted him about an unidentified female sneaking around the house."
"So he'll be prepared?" she joked though her ears had perked about the mention of Duo - dragging Heero off somewhere to calm him down. 'I wonder . . .'
"He's always prepared, but unfortunately he can't just leave school without some unwanted attention. With any luck he'll think you're Relena and won't be too worried about it being a potential threat."
"Peacecraft?" she asked, astonished. "I had no idea she knows Heero of all people."
"Yes," the teen hesitated, "she tends to follow him around a lot. Wufei has met her a few times, too, when she was looking for Heero. She's very drawn to him even with that cold exterior; actually I think that's what makes her want to get close to him."
"You seem to believe me and my intentions," she observed. "Otherwise you wouldn't be talking so openly about your friends," Sally smiled, grateful.
"I feel it in my space-heart," he nodded and looked at her for a moment, then resumed staring out the window.
"Duo's the same way with Heero, isn't he? Except Heero's also drawn to him. It's like they wonder how the other could be so different than themselves," she smirked at his surprise. "Of course they're a lot more alike than either would care to admit."
Quatre closed his mouth and just smiled, "So far everyone has noticed except them.
"Love is blind," Sally agreed, drinking her tea. "I don't think it's love quite yet, but it's definitely something very deep. And the attraction is more than definitely there."
"Maybe after today . . ." he raised an eyebrow, sneaking a look at the Oz soldier and smiled mysteriously. "Wufei got them to talk again, and I think one day will do wonders for those two."
"So why aren't you at school?" she inquired as a change of topic. She fully intended to backtrack to Heero and Duo of course, but there was later. "I hacked some files and saw that three of you had called in sick . . ." 'Might as well reveal all.'
A tranquil look, "We - Trowa and I were just informing Wufei of the idea of Heero and Duo being more than just friends."
She grinned mischievously at him, "Playing cupid?"
"Well, why do you think they have the same schedule?" he raised an eyebrow though sheepish about sneaking around his friends. They sat in silence as minutes slipped by, immersed in personal thoughts. "What's this plan?"
Sally closed her eyes, "I don't know, but I haven't gotten new orders since that last battle - and you know what they say about it being calmest before the storm. I just wanted you to be prepared for anything that is to come . . ." she sighed a little. "And - you boys really caught my attention. I started to wonder about you. I wondered if you are really my enemy, the world's enemy.
"Something snapped the moment I saw your faces . . . It took me a month of deliberation until I decided what I was going to do. Even then - even now I'm not quite sure," she laughed at her own stupidity. "I just thought I had to meet you pilots again."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A period of confusion, organized chaos - Heero braced himself for the assaulting noise of the cafeteria. Lunch was always like this, and his comrade always seemed to be a part of it, so alive and happy as he chatted with "friends." But the outgoing pilot distanced himself from them so well that they never noticed.
His loyalties never strayed, sticking like glue to his friends. The five had always sat at a booth, squeezing themselves in the limited space alone. Quatre and Duo would make conversation, occasionally getting a grunt or two from the others. It suited all of them perfectly, but today - there would be two available seats for anyone to sit at. 'And who wouldn't want to be around Duo? He draws everyone in like moths to a single flame.' There were three - if the squeezing option seemed acceptable.
Heero allowed himself to be dragged into the chicken line. It served - chicken - every single day, every week, every year. Duo gave him a broad smile, chattering on about whatever topic registered in his mind. The Japanese youth found the edges of his lips quirking into a faint smirk as he watched the violet-eyed pilot.
"Aww! Come on, Heero. Loosen up!" he commanded as he did everyday, but today the other soldier felt intent to comply.
"I am loose," he replied, imitating usual annoyance, crossing arms firmly.
"Sure," sarcasm dripped from his mouth, "compared to who? Dead people? Nah, even they relax."
"Hey, Maxwell!" a tall blonde freshman waved slightly in greeting, giving Heero a curt nod good-naturedly.
"Hey, Kelmer! You want to help me out with Heero here? He's so neutral," Duo frowned disapprovingly before breaking into a grin, eyes sparkling. He seemed happier than he had been in a long time.
"Hmm," with creased brow, Kelmer good-naturedly surveyed the 'problem.' "That's a tough one. I don't think he's the type that likes to change. Maybe you ought to leave him alone, huh?" he grinned again, slapped Duo on the back before making his exit.
"He's right, you know," Heero told the braided student in all seriousness.
Duo was about to make a grand retort when he was interrupted rudely by a large, dark-skinned hand, pushing through the crowd. More specifically it tried to push Heero aside in vain. The perfect soldier was still perfectly centered, and it was the hand's owner that fell back a little. Beady eyes bulged before flashing in anger.
"What the Hell? Bitch, move!" he fumed, nostrils flaring out.
"Watch it, Sean," Duo warned lowly, quietly.
Prussian blue as cold as ever flicked over at Heero's assaulter, deciding it wasn't even worth the effort. He scooted over slightly and murmured a harsh, "Omae o korosu," to Sean as he passed.
Words died in his throat the instant black clashed with blue. However Heero just smirked, the closest thing to a smile he could manage. The harsh clips of blue softened slightly. It was subtle, but the message was delivered. Sean's surprised expression turned into a grin as he let loose a chuckle. "You aight, Yuy."
Duo could only gape at his friend in utter shock, rendered completely speechless. "You shut up," he leaned in to give the idiot a short whisper.
One hand clasped his chin and crisply shut it. "Heero!" The braided pilot sputtered. "God, I never thought I'd live to see the day that you'd do - do - that!" he settled for those words, smiling in admiration. "There's hope after all!" he laughed.
'You look good smiling. Do you know that?' "Regular fries, please," Heero requested the lunch lady, gaze still following Duo's movements.
Currently the American was digging through a pile of cookies in search of the biggest one. Heero smirked and tossed a cookie on his friend's tray. Duo looked up and grinned at him, paying for both of their lunches, while Heero grabbed a breaded chicken sandwich.
They sat their red trays at the usual lunching spot and slipped into the cushioned seats. Heero efficiently unwrapped his sandwich and proceeded to eat, popping open his carton of chocolate milk with the other hand. Duo was inhaling the contents of his rather sumptuous lunch. One, twelve-piece container of Chicken nuggets disappeared quickly along with a cup of curly fries. He gulped down his cherry coke before turning his attention to the cookie.
"Slow down," Heero advised him, a hint of amusement glinting in midnight blue.
Duo stuck his tongue out at the soldier regardless, "Well, I want to get done soon, so we can go out in the courtyard. And yes, you're coming whether you like it or not." He gave a firm nod but laughed at Heero's quirked eyebrow.
"Hn," the pilot glanced away, out the window. "I would say the peace and quiet would be nice -" he trailed off.
"Hey! I can be quiet. I'm not so annoying and loud and talkative all the time," the American pouted, picking out a fry.
"I know." The simple sentence confused Duo, and Heero knew it. It was part of the reason why he said it - to make the other pilot feel as confused as he was. It was a selfish and stupid reason, but the urge was still there in the end. The other part of the reason was that it was true. In fact that's what makes Duo so confusing to him.
By then the dark-haired teen had finished off the remnants of his meal and sat quietly. His comrade was also polishing off his tray. He gave a bright smile, "Ready to go?"
"Hn," the grunt was interpreted as a yes as both students walked to the trash bins, dumping in trash and throwing their trays on top.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Nothing," Wufei muttered. "Barton. What about you?"
The clown walked over calmly, past Wufei. "Nothing. Let's head back." 'She's either telling the truth or taking a huge risk. I doubt it's the latter, but you never know.'
"I suppose you're right," he sighed but half-relieved they didn't find anything. 'So we wasted a few hours and found assurance.'
* * *
"Hey!" Quatre greeted the other pilots with a bright smile. "How'd it go?"
"Judging by that look on your face you already know," Wufei grumbled to himself. "Well, onna," he turned to face Sally, "I guess you're not lying. Unless you're taking an enormous risk."
She grinned, smoky blue shimmered, "So I can stay?" she asked hopefully to everyone, but she remained looking at Wufei, seeking for the withdrawn man's approval.
"Of course," the Arabic responded. "We'll be happy to have you as our guest, especially since you have no other place to go."
'You're really riding on this, aren't you? To place so much trust in a group of terrorists . . . Who are you?' The Chinese soldier scrutinized the major with a frown. Her large eyes stared back at him, unblinkingly.
'You've met your match, Wufei,' Quatre mused silently, 'again . . .' "It's time to make lunch," he announced, shooing everyone out of the kitchen.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
(Flashback)
"Snow . . ." the boy breathed in awe, gingerly brushing his numb fingers across the shimmering powder.
"I knew you'd like it," Heero stood by smiling, squatting down to join his companion.
"How?" violet eyes lifted up in wonder. "I mean it doesn't snow in the colonies."
"I met a man that had some kind of machine that can produce snow. He let me have it since it was broken. And I managed to fix some of the wiring," he grinned as a pair of arms launched at him, embracing the six- year old at the same time knocking both into the snow.
"I love you, Heero!" the braided youth smiled cheekily, so happy, so alive. 'I can't believe he did this for me.'
"Love you, too," he laughed. "You look good when you smile . . ." He reached out to brush away a chunk of snow from chestnut locks.
(End)
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Duo sighed, 'Good times, good times . . . Life in the streets wasn't so bad with you around. Fighting isn't so bad with you.' He felt so old, jaded by life experiences even at a mere fifteen. Sneaking a glance at Heero, he felt his heartstrings tug slightly, aching a little. 'Smile, Heero. Why can't you just fucking smile? You're so wonderful beneath that mask. I know you are. You deserve to be happy, but instead you're stuck in the middle of an endless war.'
Suddenly he found Prussian blue shooting straight into his eyes, staring back intensely - yet still unreadable. Arms crossed, hair perfectly messy, Heero had stood silently the whole time, secretly watching the American marvel at the snowfall. No emotions rolled across the barren expression. A sudden draft breezed by, flakes of snow rolled with the slight wind, casting a look of mist across the floors of cobblestone. And the day passed by like the breeze, quickly but with a strange atmosphere.
* * *
Exhaustingly, the doors of the bus squeezed open as Duo hopped off the vehicle onto the concrete sidewalk. Heero followed, and the two walked back home, not knowing what exactly to expect. Trowa had informed them at school that the "intrusion problem was taken care of." Warily, the Japanese pilot cracked open the front door.
"Hello, Heero, Duo," Quatre chose that moment to walk to the foyer, smiling. "How was school?"
"Heero scared the Hell outta me at lunch," Duo smirked, dumping his backpack down on the floor. "But I'm more curious about this intruder of yours . . . It's not Relena, is it?" he questioned with dread.
The blonde laughed, "No, it's not Relena, but we all know her."
"Who is it?" Heero asked, stepping onto the plush carpet. "Is she in the house right now?"
"You remember about a month ago, at that inn?" Quatre smiled nervously. "It's Sally. And yes, she's in the house, but before you get your gun out - I think you should hear an explanation."
"Hn," Heero grunted. "If you say you have the problem taken care of . . . then there's no need for my gun. Not yet anyway. I'll deal with this after Duo and I finish homework, and we brought you yours." He withdrew a stack of papers and deposited the material into Quatre's hands.
"You can borrow my algebra book, but otherwise I think you're fine," Duo smiled. "I'd love to see Sally again, but you know," he smirked, "duty calls!"
Quatre was left confused. 'What happened to them today?' Slowly confusion morphed into mischief, 'Hmm . . . very interesting. Duo's actually doing his homework first, and Heero's less mission oriented and more trusting . . . They really do bring out the best in each other.' He grinned even as he walked back to where the others congregated.
"Well? How did they take it?" Wufei asked curiously, frowning at the smile plastered firmly on the pilot's face. 'Where are they?'
His smile broadened, "They didn't . . . Heero said that if we said we had the problem taken care of, he doesn't have a reason to worry. He said he'd deal with it later, after homework. And for some reason Duo said he'd love to stay and chat, but he has homework . . . It was really weird."
"Maxwell??? That baka is thinking about doing homework first thing? That's - unbelievable! And Yuy trusting us like that? What's going on," dark eye narrowed in suspicion. "And quit smiling, Winner." He scowled.
"It only means our plan's going to work better," he replied easily. "And yes, it is strange, but I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing."
Trowa smiled faintly, "I agree with Quatre."
"Me, too!" Sally grinned. "I knew there was something going on between those two."
"Yeah," he grudgingly joined the majority opinion. "We'll see."
"Oh, and here," Quatre dropped the stack of homework with a thud on the coffee table, standing back in satisfaction. "There's our homework for the day. We should do it now before we have to make it up along with tomorrow's work load."
"So what do you have?" Sally leaned over and inspected the papers, riffling through them briefly with a furrowed brow. Her lean fingers divided it into three parts afterwards and handed each pilot a stack. "You had a lab in honors bio. How are you going to make up that?"
"Hmm?" Quatre scanned over the sheet. "It's not a problem. We just looked at different things under a light microscope. We'll have to draw what we saw and answer some questions on each station."
"How are you going to draw what you see?" she inquired them.
The blonde soldier chuckled, "You wouldn't believe some of the files on our computers. Even if we don't remember what the cells look like, we can find pictures. If all else fails it's a two day lab, so we can draw tomorrow," he explained cheerfully and began to scribble answers down on the sheet after grabbing for a random pencil.
* * *
"Hey, guys!" Duo bounded downstairs.
"Shut up, Maxwell," Wufei scowled at the braided American. "You're too loud."
"Hi, Duo!" Sally grinned at the new edition to the room.
"Hey, Sally!" he smiled with a small waved. 'Wufei's acting more like a bastard than usual.' "What's up? I mean I didn't expect to see you again - at least not like this." He had crossed the floor, gazing expectantly at the girl.
"An explanation sounds good," Heero had quietly scuffled from upstairs and placed an Algebra book on the coffee table.
"I know you're gundam pilots . . ." nervously, the words slipped out quickly. "Actually I know a lot of things I shouldn't know."
Her eyes glittered lightly at the last statement, meeting a rather suspicious pair of amethyst depths. "What do you mean? How did you know?"
Sally drew in a deep breath, eyes fluttering shut and open again after a moment of refocusing. "Well, I want you to know that I'm not a spy or anything, but I am part of Oz. I didn't come here to use you somehow to win the war for Oz . . . I came here to warn you about something actually. Oz is planning a trap."
"How do I know you're not part of it?" Heero challenged quietly, staring at the Major with deadly blue eyes.
"I saw your last mission. I saw pretty much everything after somehow accidentally hacking into your systems," eyes narrowed. Sally knew what they were thinking - how could someone accidentally hack into a gundam?
"She's telling the truth, guys," Quatre interrupted. "Trowa and Wufei hacked into her files and checked searched her, her things, the surrounding area. She's got nothing to hide and no backup with no place to go. The only tracker we found was the one she used to find us."
"So she's staying with us?" Duo inquired, brow furrowing. "How long?"
The girl smiled sheepishly, "I hadn't planned that far yet . . ." All of a sudden her reasons for coming out here seemed trivial, stupid, unimportant. Through clenched teeth, she hissed in a breath before laughing at herself. Silvery sapphire turned to look at all the gundam pilots, all waiting for her response. "I'm sorry. Everything just seems so stupid now, and I'm not sure to warn you is all I came for."
"What else?" the edge was lost in Wufei's voice.
"I guess after seeing the battle - and you pilots . . . I really wanted to meet you. You surprised me so much that night - it was a faceless enemy before, but now I wonder which side is really right," she explained in a slow murmur.
"I fight for what I believe in. To other people it may be wrong what I think or how I choose to achieve my goals, but it's my choice alone. It's not a matter of black and white," the monotony of his words couldn't deter their meaning as everyone else fell silent - awestruck by things coming from a supposably emotionless soldier.
Duo was more enraptured with Heero more than everyone else, staring at him unblinkingly with dark lilac eyes. A soft smile crept across his mouth, and he broke the silence gently, "Nothing's ever black and white. Even society can't pinpoint the lines never to cross for all of us."
"For me - I want to help you in any way possible, and I swear I'll do it. I'll help you win this war until I die or until it ends," raw determination glinted in cornflower blue. "I'm more sure than ever it's what I'm meant to do."
It was a day full of surprises indeed, slipping away stealthily into night.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Replies to Reviews -
Muochou - Hey! Thank you very much for giving me a review! And that rape thing - lol - I was really hyper during that part of it, so it was a little weird. But my friends cracked up ^_^ And you just have to love Trowa!
shai'tan_keyloh - Hi! Thank you so much for the review and the comments! I think for now I'll ditch Bravenet and just email people from my Hotmail account. I'll be sure to include you in, and you probably know this because by now you would have gotten the email, and yeah, I'm rambling again! ^_^;; Well, thank you again!
Foxfire- Hi, hun! I'm talking to you online right now. Anyway, thank you so much for the nice, long review ^___________^ The comments and specifications are great! And the answer to the poll was very good. I've been wondering about Relena bashing for a while now. I can't believe I used to read 1+R. The ones I read (which were really hard to find) weren't that good. I mean the plot was great and all - but their relationship never really made complete sense to me. I didn't know why . . . until you know I got into shounen ai/yaoi! And the homework thing, my friends and I always share who's done their homework and who hasn't. It's really not too big of a deal. And I just realized how weird it is for Duo to just come home and do his homework when yesterday he hadn't done it at all. ^_^ Like I said, surprises! And I like Wufei. His coolness is amplified by his whole in need of anger management thing! I mean I know he's not really like that, but it's a nice mask, and it's funny to read/write/think about!
Anime Redneck - Lol! That line was hilarious! And I'm so sorry about your account being wiped out. Those things are just so not fair. I hope that never happens to me. I'd be so pissed . . . *growls then brightens* Anyway, thank you so much for the great review as usual! It's like everyone is noticing something about Heero and Duo! Do you know how long it took me to find a way to make them believe Sally??? I think I over- worked my mind a little, and it was frustrating, but I went with what I went with. Oh dear God . . . Treize dressed like that? *cracks up* I've read some good fics with that, too. Wufei is also stuck with Zechs sometimes, but I don't really see that. Or he's stuck with Relena. That's actually not so uncommon, and it'd sure be interesting to write about. I mean Relena's really girly sometimes although she is also really strong, but you know what I mean. I don't really know. I mean I think 3x4 and 1x2 are kind of pretty much given considering - well everything. Then what about the people left? The vacation thing was great. Gotta love creativity! Relena bashing? Sometimes I think she deserves a break, but when she comes between Heero and Duo - I feel like screaming. I have half a mind to just let all these love interests of his wandering into his life - see what happens. Hehe . . .
LB - Hola! It's great to hear from you! Thank you so much for sticking by and continuing to review! See? I did a quicker update this time ^_^ Gotta love winter break! I'm having some problems right now with my English project _ Sarah and I were supposed to go to a nursing home and perform some music for them, but the directors are never there every time she calls, and the rules changed and whatnot. I don't think we can do that anymore . . . So I'm hoping Shaffer will understand our predicament and accept the research papers on the system instead _ *hopes* The paper sounds like such a tedious task though! And I have about two and a half days to do it! I can't research everything and look for statistics like that! *wails* Lol, I think Relena bashing depends on her character in the story. I mean it's hilarious sometimes in like crazy, silly fics - but in more serious fics, I don't think she should be. I try not to do it. And I don't think I will in this fic other than a little from Duo and Wufei. You know how their personalities go . . . *smiles*
Backlash - Hey! Of course I'll add you to my list! Like I told Muochou I'm probably not going to be using Bravenet anytime soon. Instead I'll send out emails from my Hotmail account. That way it shouldn't appear in your junk/bulk mail folder, and I don't have to worry about Bravenet being down. Thanks for leaving the review!
Morkeleb - Lol! You're like the first one that's pointed out my style change! I know what you mean. If I wanted to write like I used to I have practically force it. It was so flowery . . . and everything, you know? Sometimes I think I want the flowery though because I'm amazed that I actually wrote like that. I think the change resulted from just me learning more things about writing and whatnot. I'm glad you liked it, though! Thank you so much for the review, and I hope this updating speed is a lot better than the last one . . .
Lora-helen - Hi! How are you? Good, I'm hoping. I haven't talked to you much lately, but it's always great to get a review, so thank you very much! I know that it took practically forever for me to post that one, but I'm hoping I can maintain a pretty good speed even with school starting soon. Maybe after finals? Those I'm so not looking forward to, and I really need to buckle down and study. I just need some good motivation. I was kind of in different moods when I wrote this, so you may notice a change. Of course the different moods were kind of at different scenes, so maybe it was okay? ^_^ Well, thanks again!
Lokogato - Hey! Thank you so much for the awesome review! I really appreciate everyone's support in this, and I hope I'll be able to write faster even with school starting again. It was really different last year. We didn't get as many projects or homework -- *pouts* Oh, well! We just have to deal with it, ne? Aww, you're so sweet! And don't worry, I'll keep on writing this ^_^
Violet_eyes - Wow! Thank you very much for all the wonderful comments in the review! It makes me feel warm and fuzzy knowing people really like this! I have to write a paper on "The System" for English, and hopefully it won't be as boring as I think I will be . . . And I really hope this was a quick enough update because I really don't think I can do much better especially after break. Thanks again!
SilverShinigami - Hi, hun! ^_^ you never did tell me what boxing day was all about. But hey, you got off work, so it must be a good thing! The Relena bashing answer was great. It's really interesting to see what people think of her in this perspective. For me I think she's very misunderstood because of the whole going after Heero thing. I mean you have to admit that voice is kind of annoying when it says his name like that. Ooh! Good song on the radio! ^_^ I love Eminem, especially Lose Yourself. Well, after that random episode - I don't really mind her as long as she's paired with someone besides those canon pairings ^_^ Thank you very much for the review!
Ryoko-onee - Hey! I'm sorry about the long wait for that chapter, but hopefully this was a better time than the last one ^_^ Merci beaucoup for the great review! And of course Wufei can't be too much of an A-hole here! ^_^
DBZVelena - Hi! Nope, I haven't signed up on GWA yet . . . Maybe I will one day, but it's hard to keep up with everything right now. I want to see how well I can handle things with school going. It does sound like a great place, though ^_^ Thank you so much for the review!
DragonGirl - Hey! Thank you very much for the review! Hopefully, you didn't have to wait very long for this chapter. I've been working - and I ran into a few problems here and there, but I think I'm okay with this for now ^_^ Wow, sounds like a full house. I hope you had a wonderful Holiday season! I love chocolate . . . especially the really good kind. I like the Lindor Truffles Madame gives us in French . . . Yum! ^_^
Soulsearcher Ironforge - Hey! Thank you very much for the review! I'm watching The Simpsons right now ^_^ I love that show! I like your way of describing Relena and Sally! It was Sally though. I mentioned her name a few times ^_^;; The comments were great, and I'm glad you found it again. The kiss was in chapter 14, wasn't it? I'm pretty sure, but I'm glad you're all caught up now! And of course I'll put you on the mailing list! Well, thanks again!
Dyna- Hi! Wow, I haven't seen you in a while, but it's great to get another review from you, so thank you very much ^_^ And yes, that sounds like a very appropriate way to sum up SSR. I hope this wasn't a long wait!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Polls!
On going:
What ice cream flavor would each of the Gboys be?
Which character on Gundam Wing would you like to marry the most?
What instrument would the characters play in band (any band)?
What is your favorite Wufei pairing that won't interfere with the ones I have in this fic already?
Vacation time! Well not in the REAL world, but that's okay ^_~ Where and which characters would you like to take on vacation? Have fun imagining!
Does Relena deserve to be bashed? An explanation would also be great!
New Poll: Why do you like yaoi? An explanation here would also be great!
Mailing list - You guys know the drill! If you want to be notified via email about my updates leave an email and a name ^_^ I don't know if anyone wants on it anymore, but it's still open.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
And Voila! It's actually done! This is a longer chapter than usual. It's around ten pages with spacing in between paragraphs ^_^ I haven't been writing long chapters lately. I hope everyone had wonderful holidays! And I hope you guys liked it! I think it was - okay. It would be fabulous if you left a review!
Prisoner of War 21
"Well?" the Chinese man demanded, scorching glare fixated on the girl, "What the Hell do you think you're doing here, onna?"
She fired a glare of her own, "The name's Sally. Surely you haven't forgotten?" she mocked with a snort. "And I'll explain everything when you let me come inside. It's freezing out here, you know."
By then Quatre had quickly skidded down the stairs in curiosity, Trowa followed in a calmer pace. "Sally!" he shouted in amazement as he stared frozenly at her unexpected appearance.
"Glad to see someone remembered," she smiled. "Hi, Quatre."
The blonde Arabic shook off the shock and scrambled to the door, "Come in. It's below freezing out there!" he ushered her in though he desperately wondered why she was here. 'For all we know this could be just a coincidence,' he bit his lip however even as they all congregated in the kitchen.
"Would you like some tea?" he offered hastily, already busying himself to make some.
"Yes, thank you," she accepted gratefully. "I suppose you're all wondering why I'm here . . ." she sighed. 'Can't back out now, Sally. Get a grip.'
Wufei openly released a loud snort. "Now, that you're inside. Care to explain yourself?"
Her confidence faltered, and Sally took a deep breath of air, "I know that you're Gundam pilots." Never once did smoky sapphire leave Wufei's face as she spoke.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Wufei denied roughly. "Us terrorists?"
Quatre froze in mid-pour, but he caught himself before the cool water spilled across the countertop. Wufei had glanced away, and Trowa had managed to keep his shock in check. Silence intruded the warm home, interrupted by Sally's sigh.
"I think you do," she murmured softly, chuckling slightly, massaging her temples. "You're last mission? Heero falling into that trap. Duo saved him the last minute . . ."
The pilots remained silent, "I saw it. I hacked into your files on accident, and I saw your vid screens. I was shocked that you are so young, and it definitely opened my eyes to a lot more than I expected. I didn't know what to feel -"
"Why are you here?" Quatre asked, voice slightly cracking. His grip on the fragile china tightened as he turned to face Sally. Stray bangs remained unbrushed from his eyes; she had hit a nerve.
Pleading blue lowered, "I'm sorry," she murmured with sincerity. "I have to warn you. Oz has some sort of plan - some kind of trap. I don't know what it is, but I don't want any of you to get hurt by it."
Impassive green peered at her quietly, "How do you expect us to trust you?" 'There's a great chance she's lying.'
"You'll just have to believe me," she reflected her pleading gaze back at the Chinese pilot. "I'm not lying." 'You have to believe me.'
"You're in a dangerous position, onna," his eyes flashed with a little less fire. "I could kill you right here and now."
"Well, yes," the blonde agreed, "but regardless of whether I die or not the plan is still there. In the end you'll see I was telling the complete and honest truth, but to be right wasn't why I came. I was hoping to do something right after seeing both sides."
"You haven't seen both sides," Wufei retorted. "You're an Oz soldier. That's why the man called you major in that inn, and one battle you saw will not change that fact."
She smiled faintly, "I never said that my official rank and side has changed. And I know I don't know very much about how you pilots live your lives, but I want this war to end just as much as you do - I want the right side to win."
"There are no winners in war," Quatre sighed softly. 'The more she talks the more sincere she seems. And we have to make a decision soon before Heero gets back because Allah knows what he'll do. He'll do whatever is necessary to complete the mission.'
"Search me," she suggested simply. "Search me, my things, the surrounding area. I've got nothing to hide and no place to go." She challenged them, sitting back in her chair.
Wufei tried to stare her down, obsidian shooting shards of ice at her. A minute passed - then two - then ten. "Oh for the love of Nataku!" he scowled as she smiled, victorious. "Barton and I will take care of this."
Mutely, Trowa stripped searched the girl without so much as a blink of an eye, and Wufei left to retrieve more equipment from the hangars. When the European seemed satisfied, the black-haired boy had returned, running a metal detector over her body. The thorough search ended fruitless, but all three pilots were relieved. Sally even found some relief of her own.
Trowa and Wufei proceeded to exit the home, but the green-eyed pilot shot one last look at Quatre before leaving.
"I'll look after Sally," the Arabic offered with a smile and a moment later the front door clicked shut.
The blonde pilot set down two steamy cups of herbal tea, accented with jasmine. "Thank you," Sally murmured softly. "I know it's hard to even give me this chance."
Quatre granted her a sweet smile in return and took a sip of tea, "You really do seem sincere . . . Even Wufei is somewhat convinced."
She grinned back, "But what about when Heero comes back? I don't think he'll be too happy about this. Might not live for very long," she mused more to herself than anyone else.
The Gundam pilot laughed, "I'm sure Duo will be able to drag him away until he's calmed down. Anyway, Trowa already contacted him about an unidentified female sneaking around the house."
"So he'll be prepared?" she joked though her ears had perked about the mention of Duo - dragging Heero off somewhere to calm him down. 'I wonder . . .'
"He's always prepared, but unfortunately he can't just leave school without some unwanted attention. With any luck he'll think you're Relena and won't be too worried about it being a potential threat."
"Peacecraft?" she asked, astonished. "I had no idea she knows Heero of all people."
"Yes," the teen hesitated, "she tends to follow him around a lot. Wufei has met her a few times, too, when she was looking for Heero. She's very drawn to him even with that cold exterior; actually I think that's what makes her want to get close to him."
"You seem to believe me and my intentions," she observed. "Otherwise you wouldn't be talking so openly about your friends," Sally smiled, grateful.
"I feel it in my space-heart," he nodded and looked at her for a moment, then resumed staring out the window.
"Duo's the same way with Heero, isn't he? Except Heero's also drawn to him. It's like they wonder how the other could be so different than themselves," she smirked at his surprise. "Of course they're a lot more alike than either would care to admit."
Quatre closed his mouth and just smiled, "So far everyone has noticed except them.
"Love is blind," Sally agreed, drinking her tea. "I don't think it's love quite yet, but it's definitely something very deep. And the attraction is more than definitely there."
"Maybe after today . . ." he raised an eyebrow, sneaking a look at the Oz soldier and smiled mysteriously. "Wufei got them to talk again, and I think one day will do wonders for those two."
"So why aren't you at school?" she inquired as a change of topic. She fully intended to backtrack to Heero and Duo of course, but there was later. "I hacked some files and saw that three of you had called in sick . . ." 'Might as well reveal all.'
A tranquil look, "We - Trowa and I were just informing Wufei of the idea of Heero and Duo being more than just friends."
She grinned mischievously at him, "Playing cupid?"
"Well, why do you think they have the same schedule?" he raised an eyebrow though sheepish about sneaking around his friends. They sat in silence as minutes slipped by, immersed in personal thoughts. "What's this plan?"
Sally closed her eyes, "I don't know, but I haven't gotten new orders since that last battle - and you know what they say about it being calmest before the storm. I just wanted you to be prepared for anything that is to come . . ." she sighed a little. "And - you boys really caught my attention. I started to wonder about you. I wondered if you are really my enemy, the world's enemy.
"Something snapped the moment I saw your faces . . . It took me a month of deliberation until I decided what I was going to do. Even then - even now I'm not quite sure," she laughed at her own stupidity. "I just thought I had to meet you pilots again."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A period of confusion, organized chaos - Heero braced himself for the assaulting noise of the cafeteria. Lunch was always like this, and his comrade always seemed to be a part of it, so alive and happy as he chatted with "friends." But the outgoing pilot distanced himself from them so well that they never noticed.
His loyalties never strayed, sticking like glue to his friends. The five had always sat at a booth, squeezing themselves in the limited space alone. Quatre and Duo would make conversation, occasionally getting a grunt or two from the others. It suited all of them perfectly, but today - there would be two available seats for anyone to sit at. 'And who wouldn't want to be around Duo? He draws everyone in like moths to a single flame.' There were three - if the squeezing option seemed acceptable.
Heero allowed himself to be dragged into the chicken line. It served - chicken - every single day, every week, every year. Duo gave him a broad smile, chattering on about whatever topic registered in his mind. The Japanese youth found the edges of his lips quirking into a faint smirk as he watched the violet-eyed pilot.
"Aww! Come on, Heero. Loosen up!" he commanded as he did everyday, but today the other soldier felt intent to comply.
"I am loose," he replied, imitating usual annoyance, crossing arms firmly.
"Sure," sarcasm dripped from his mouth, "compared to who? Dead people? Nah, even they relax."
"Hey, Maxwell!" a tall blonde freshman waved slightly in greeting, giving Heero a curt nod good-naturedly.
"Hey, Kelmer! You want to help me out with Heero here? He's so neutral," Duo frowned disapprovingly before breaking into a grin, eyes sparkling. He seemed happier than he had been in a long time.
"Hmm," with creased brow, Kelmer good-naturedly surveyed the 'problem.' "That's a tough one. I don't think he's the type that likes to change. Maybe you ought to leave him alone, huh?" he grinned again, slapped Duo on the back before making his exit.
"He's right, you know," Heero told the braided student in all seriousness.
Duo was about to make a grand retort when he was interrupted rudely by a large, dark-skinned hand, pushing through the crowd. More specifically it tried to push Heero aside in vain. The perfect soldier was still perfectly centered, and it was the hand's owner that fell back a little. Beady eyes bulged before flashing in anger.
"What the Hell? Bitch, move!" he fumed, nostrils flaring out.
"Watch it, Sean," Duo warned lowly, quietly.
Prussian blue as cold as ever flicked over at Heero's assaulter, deciding it wasn't even worth the effort. He scooted over slightly and murmured a harsh, "Omae o korosu," to Sean as he passed.
Words died in his throat the instant black clashed with blue. However Heero just smirked, the closest thing to a smile he could manage. The harsh clips of blue softened slightly. It was subtle, but the message was delivered. Sean's surprised expression turned into a grin as he let loose a chuckle. "You aight, Yuy."
Duo could only gape at his friend in utter shock, rendered completely speechless. "You shut up," he leaned in to give the idiot a short whisper.
One hand clasped his chin and crisply shut it. "Heero!" The braided pilot sputtered. "God, I never thought I'd live to see the day that you'd do - do - that!" he settled for those words, smiling in admiration. "There's hope after all!" he laughed.
'You look good smiling. Do you know that?' "Regular fries, please," Heero requested the lunch lady, gaze still following Duo's movements.
Currently the American was digging through a pile of cookies in search of the biggest one. Heero smirked and tossed a cookie on his friend's tray. Duo looked up and grinned at him, paying for both of their lunches, while Heero grabbed a breaded chicken sandwich.
They sat their red trays at the usual lunching spot and slipped into the cushioned seats. Heero efficiently unwrapped his sandwich and proceeded to eat, popping open his carton of chocolate milk with the other hand. Duo was inhaling the contents of his rather sumptuous lunch. One, twelve-piece container of Chicken nuggets disappeared quickly along with a cup of curly fries. He gulped down his cherry coke before turning his attention to the cookie.
"Slow down," Heero advised him, a hint of amusement glinting in midnight blue.
Duo stuck his tongue out at the soldier regardless, "Well, I want to get done soon, so we can go out in the courtyard. And yes, you're coming whether you like it or not." He gave a firm nod but laughed at Heero's quirked eyebrow.
"Hn," the pilot glanced away, out the window. "I would say the peace and quiet would be nice -" he trailed off.
"Hey! I can be quiet. I'm not so annoying and loud and talkative all the time," the American pouted, picking out a fry.
"I know." The simple sentence confused Duo, and Heero knew it. It was part of the reason why he said it - to make the other pilot feel as confused as he was. It was a selfish and stupid reason, but the urge was still there in the end. The other part of the reason was that it was true. In fact that's what makes Duo so confusing to him.
By then the dark-haired teen had finished off the remnants of his meal and sat quietly. His comrade was also polishing off his tray. He gave a bright smile, "Ready to go?"
"Hn," the grunt was interpreted as a yes as both students walked to the trash bins, dumping in trash and throwing their trays on top.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Nothing," Wufei muttered. "Barton. What about you?"
The clown walked over calmly, past Wufei. "Nothing. Let's head back." 'She's either telling the truth or taking a huge risk. I doubt it's the latter, but you never know.'
"I suppose you're right," he sighed but half-relieved they didn't find anything. 'So we wasted a few hours and found assurance.'
* * *
"Hey!" Quatre greeted the other pilots with a bright smile. "How'd it go?"
"Judging by that look on your face you already know," Wufei grumbled to himself. "Well, onna," he turned to face Sally, "I guess you're not lying. Unless you're taking an enormous risk."
She grinned, smoky blue shimmered, "So I can stay?" she asked hopefully to everyone, but she remained looking at Wufei, seeking for the withdrawn man's approval.
"Of course," the Arabic responded. "We'll be happy to have you as our guest, especially since you have no other place to go."
'You're really riding on this, aren't you? To place so much trust in a group of terrorists . . . Who are you?' The Chinese soldier scrutinized the major with a frown. Her large eyes stared back at him, unblinkingly.
'You've met your match, Wufei,' Quatre mused silently, 'again . . .' "It's time to make lunch," he announced, shooing everyone out of the kitchen.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
(Flashback)
"Snow . . ." the boy breathed in awe, gingerly brushing his numb fingers across the shimmering powder.
"I knew you'd like it," Heero stood by smiling, squatting down to join his companion.
"How?" violet eyes lifted up in wonder. "I mean it doesn't snow in the colonies."
"I met a man that had some kind of machine that can produce snow. He let me have it since it was broken. And I managed to fix some of the wiring," he grinned as a pair of arms launched at him, embracing the six- year old at the same time knocking both into the snow.
"I love you, Heero!" the braided youth smiled cheekily, so happy, so alive. 'I can't believe he did this for me.'
"Love you, too," he laughed. "You look good when you smile . . ." He reached out to brush away a chunk of snow from chestnut locks.
(End)
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Duo sighed, 'Good times, good times . . . Life in the streets wasn't so bad with you around. Fighting isn't so bad with you.' He felt so old, jaded by life experiences even at a mere fifteen. Sneaking a glance at Heero, he felt his heartstrings tug slightly, aching a little. 'Smile, Heero. Why can't you just fucking smile? You're so wonderful beneath that mask. I know you are. You deserve to be happy, but instead you're stuck in the middle of an endless war.'
Suddenly he found Prussian blue shooting straight into his eyes, staring back intensely - yet still unreadable. Arms crossed, hair perfectly messy, Heero had stood silently the whole time, secretly watching the American marvel at the snowfall. No emotions rolled across the barren expression. A sudden draft breezed by, flakes of snow rolled with the slight wind, casting a look of mist across the floors of cobblestone. And the day passed by like the breeze, quickly but with a strange atmosphere.
* * *
Exhaustingly, the doors of the bus squeezed open as Duo hopped off the vehicle onto the concrete sidewalk. Heero followed, and the two walked back home, not knowing what exactly to expect. Trowa had informed them at school that the "intrusion problem was taken care of." Warily, the Japanese pilot cracked open the front door.
"Hello, Heero, Duo," Quatre chose that moment to walk to the foyer, smiling. "How was school?"
"Heero scared the Hell outta me at lunch," Duo smirked, dumping his backpack down on the floor. "But I'm more curious about this intruder of yours . . . It's not Relena, is it?" he questioned with dread.
The blonde laughed, "No, it's not Relena, but we all know her."
"Who is it?" Heero asked, stepping onto the plush carpet. "Is she in the house right now?"
"You remember about a month ago, at that inn?" Quatre smiled nervously. "It's Sally. And yes, she's in the house, but before you get your gun out - I think you should hear an explanation."
"Hn," Heero grunted. "If you say you have the problem taken care of . . . then there's no need for my gun. Not yet anyway. I'll deal with this after Duo and I finish homework, and we brought you yours." He withdrew a stack of papers and deposited the material into Quatre's hands.
"You can borrow my algebra book, but otherwise I think you're fine," Duo smiled. "I'd love to see Sally again, but you know," he smirked, "duty calls!"
Quatre was left confused. 'What happened to them today?' Slowly confusion morphed into mischief, 'Hmm . . . very interesting. Duo's actually doing his homework first, and Heero's less mission oriented and more trusting . . . They really do bring out the best in each other.' He grinned even as he walked back to where the others congregated.
"Well? How did they take it?" Wufei asked curiously, frowning at the smile plastered firmly on the pilot's face. 'Where are they?'
His smile broadened, "They didn't . . . Heero said that if we said we had the problem taken care of, he doesn't have a reason to worry. He said he'd deal with it later, after homework. And for some reason Duo said he'd love to stay and chat, but he has homework . . . It was really weird."
"Maxwell??? That baka is thinking about doing homework first thing? That's - unbelievable! And Yuy trusting us like that? What's going on," dark eye narrowed in suspicion. "And quit smiling, Winner." He scowled.
"It only means our plan's going to work better," he replied easily. "And yes, it is strange, but I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing."
Trowa smiled faintly, "I agree with Quatre."
"Me, too!" Sally grinned. "I knew there was something going on between those two."
"Yeah," he grudgingly joined the majority opinion. "We'll see."
"Oh, and here," Quatre dropped the stack of homework with a thud on the coffee table, standing back in satisfaction. "There's our homework for the day. We should do it now before we have to make it up along with tomorrow's work load."
"So what do you have?" Sally leaned over and inspected the papers, riffling through them briefly with a furrowed brow. Her lean fingers divided it into three parts afterwards and handed each pilot a stack. "You had a lab in honors bio. How are you going to make up that?"
"Hmm?" Quatre scanned over the sheet. "It's not a problem. We just looked at different things under a light microscope. We'll have to draw what we saw and answer some questions on each station."
"How are you going to draw what you see?" she inquired them.
The blonde soldier chuckled, "You wouldn't believe some of the files on our computers. Even if we don't remember what the cells look like, we can find pictures. If all else fails it's a two day lab, so we can draw tomorrow," he explained cheerfully and began to scribble answers down on the sheet after grabbing for a random pencil.
* * *
"Hey, guys!" Duo bounded downstairs.
"Shut up, Maxwell," Wufei scowled at the braided American. "You're too loud."
"Hi, Duo!" Sally grinned at the new edition to the room.
"Hey, Sally!" he smiled with a small waved. 'Wufei's acting more like a bastard than usual.' "What's up? I mean I didn't expect to see you again - at least not like this." He had crossed the floor, gazing expectantly at the girl.
"An explanation sounds good," Heero had quietly scuffled from upstairs and placed an Algebra book on the coffee table.
"I know you're gundam pilots . . ." nervously, the words slipped out quickly. "Actually I know a lot of things I shouldn't know."
Her eyes glittered lightly at the last statement, meeting a rather suspicious pair of amethyst depths. "What do you mean? How did you know?"
Sally drew in a deep breath, eyes fluttering shut and open again after a moment of refocusing. "Well, I want you to know that I'm not a spy or anything, but I am part of Oz. I didn't come here to use you somehow to win the war for Oz . . . I came here to warn you about something actually. Oz is planning a trap."
"How do I know you're not part of it?" Heero challenged quietly, staring at the Major with deadly blue eyes.
"I saw your last mission. I saw pretty much everything after somehow accidentally hacking into your systems," eyes narrowed. Sally knew what they were thinking - how could someone accidentally hack into a gundam?
"She's telling the truth, guys," Quatre interrupted. "Trowa and Wufei hacked into her files and checked searched her, her things, the surrounding area. She's got nothing to hide and no backup with no place to go. The only tracker we found was the one she used to find us."
"So she's staying with us?" Duo inquired, brow furrowing. "How long?"
The girl smiled sheepishly, "I hadn't planned that far yet . . ." All of a sudden her reasons for coming out here seemed trivial, stupid, unimportant. Through clenched teeth, she hissed in a breath before laughing at herself. Silvery sapphire turned to look at all the gundam pilots, all waiting for her response. "I'm sorry. Everything just seems so stupid now, and I'm not sure to warn you is all I came for."
"What else?" the edge was lost in Wufei's voice.
"I guess after seeing the battle - and you pilots . . . I really wanted to meet you. You surprised me so much that night - it was a faceless enemy before, but now I wonder which side is really right," she explained in a slow murmur.
"I fight for what I believe in. To other people it may be wrong what I think or how I choose to achieve my goals, but it's my choice alone. It's not a matter of black and white," the monotony of his words couldn't deter their meaning as everyone else fell silent - awestruck by things coming from a supposably emotionless soldier.
Duo was more enraptured with Heero more than everyone else, staring at him unblinkingly with dark lilac eyes. A soft smile crept across his mouth, and he broke the silence gently, "Nothing's ever black and white. Even society can't pinpoint the lines never to cross for all of us."
"For me - I want to help you in any way possible, and I swear I'll do it. I'll help you win this war until I die or until it ends," raw determination glinted in cornflower blue. "I'm more sure than ever it's what I'm meant to do."
It was a day full of surprises indeed, slipping away stealthily into night.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Replies to Reviews -
Muochou - Hey! Thank you very much for giving me a review! And that rape thing - lol - I was really hyper during that part of it, so it was a little weird. But my friends cracked up ^_^ And you just have to love Trowa!
shai'tan_keyloh - Hi! Thank you so much for the review and the comments! I think for now I'll ditch Bravenet and just email people from my Hotmail account. I'll be sure to include you in, and you probably know this because by now you would have gotten the email, and yeah, I'm rambling again! ^_^;; Well, thank you again!
Foxfire- Hi, hun! I'm talking to you online right now. Anyway, thank you so much for the nice, long review ^___________^ The comments and specifications are great! And the answer to the poll was very good. I've been wondering about Relena bashing for a while now. I can't believe I used to read 1+R. The ones I read (which were really hard to find) weren't that good. I mean the plot was great and all - but their relationship never really made complete sense to me. I didn't know why . . . until you know I got into shounen ai/yaoi! And the homework thing, my friends and I always share who's done their homework and who hasn't. It's really not too big of a deal. And I just realized how weird it is for Duo to just come home and do his homework when yesterday he hadn't done it at all. ^_^ Like I said, surprises! And I like Wufei. His coolness is amplified by his whole in need of anger management thing! I mean I know he's not really like that, but it's a nice mask, and it's funny to read/write/think about!
Anime Redneck - Lol! That line was hilarious! And I'm so sorry about your account being wiped out. Those things are just so not fair. I hope that never happens to me. I'd be so pissed . . . *growls then brightens* Anyway, thank you so much for the great review as usual! It's like everyone is noticing something about Heero and Duo! Do you know how long it took me to find a way to make them believe Sally??? I think I over- worked my mind a little, and it was frustrating, but I went with what I went with. Oh dear God . . . Treize dressed like that? *cracks up* I've read some good fics with that, too. Wufei is also stuck with Zechs sometimes, but I don't really see that. Or he's stuck with Relena. That's actually not so uncommon, and it'd sure be interesting to write about. I mean Relena's really girly sometimes although she is also really strong, but you know what I mean. I don't really know. I mean I think 3x4 and 1x2 are kind of pretty much given considering - well everything. Then what about the people left? The vacation thing was great. Gotta love creativity! Relena bashing? Sometimes I think she deserves a break, but when she comes between Heero and Duo - I feel like screaming. I have half a mind to just let all these love interests of his wandering into his life - see what happens. Hehe . . .
LB - Hola! It's great to hear from you! Thank you so much for sticking by and continuing to review! See? I did a quicker update this time ^_^ Gotta love winter break! I'm having some problems right now with my English project _ Sarah and I were supposed to go to a nursing home and perform some music for them, but the directors are never there every time she calls, and the rules changed and whatnot. I don't think we can do that anymore . . . So I'm hoping Shaffer will understand our predicament and accept the research papers on the system instead _ *hopes* The paper sounds like such a tedious task though! And I have about two and a half days to do it! I can't research everything and look for statistics like that! *wails* Lol, I think Relena bashing depends on her character in the story. I mean it's hilarious sometimes in like crazy, silly fics - but in more serious fics, I don't think she should be. I try not to do it. And I don't think I will in this fic other than a little from Duo and Wufei. You know how their personalities go . . . *smiles*
Backlash - Hey! Of course I'll add you to my list! Like I told Muochou I'm probably not going to be using Bravenet anytime soon. Instead I'll send out emails from my Hotmail account. That way it shouldn't appear in your junk/bulk mail folder, and I don't have to worry about Bravenet being down. Thanks for leaving the review!
Morkeleb - Lol! You're like the first one that's pointed out my style change! I know what you mean. If I wanted to write like I used to I have practically force it. It was so flowery . . . and everything, you know? Sometimes I think I want the flowery though because I'm amazed that I actually wrote like that. I think the change resulted from just me learning more things about writing and whatnot. I'm glad you liked it, though! Thank you so much for the review, and I hope this updating speed is a lot better than the last one . . .
Lora-helen - Hi! How are you? Good, I'm hoping. I haven't talked to you much lately, but it's always great to get a review, so thank you very much! I know that it took practically forever for me to post that one, but I'm hoping I can maintain a pretty good speed even with school starting soon. Maybe after finals? Those I'm so not looking forward to, and I really need to buckle down and study. I just need some good motivation. I was kind of in different moods when I wrote this, so you may notice a change. Of course the different moods were kind of at different scenes, so maybe it was okay? ^_^ Well, thanks again!
Lokogato - Hey! Thank you so much for the awesome review! I really appreciate everyone's support in this, and I hope I'll be able to write faster even with school starting again. It was really different last year. We didn't get as many projects or homework -- *pouts* Oh, well! We just have to deal with it, ne? Aww, you're so sweet! And don't worry, I'll keep on writing this ^_^
Violet_eyes - Wow! Thank you very much for all the wonderful comments in the review! It makes me feel warm and fuzzy knowing people really like this! I have to write a paper on "The System" for English, and hopefully it won't be as boring as I think I will be . . . And I really hope this was a quick enough update because I really don't think I can do much better especially after break. Thanks again!
SilverShinigami - Hi, hun! ^_^ you never did tell me what boxing day was all about. But hey, you got off work, so it must be a good thing! The Relena bashing answer was great. It's really interesting to see what people think of her in this perspective. For me I think she's very misunderstood because of the whole going after Heero thing. I mean you have to admit that voice is kind of annoying when it says his name like that. Ooh! Good song on the radio! ^_^ I love Eminem, especially Lose Yourself. Well, after that random episode - I don't really mind her as long as she's paired with someone besides those canon pairings ^_^ Thank you very much for the review!
Ryoko-onee - Hey! I'm sorry about the long wait for that chapter, but hopefully this was a better time than the last one ^_^ Merci beaucoup for the great review! And of course Wufei can't be too much of an A-hole here! ^_^
DBZVelena - Hi! Nope, I haven't signed up on GWA yet . . . Maybe I will one day, but it's hard to keep up with everything right now. I want to see how well I can handle things with school going. It does sound like a great place, though ^_^ Thank you so much for the review!
DragonGirl - Hey! Thank you very much for the review! Hopefully, you didn't have to wait very long for this chapter. I've been working - and I ran into a few problems here and there, but I think I'm okay with this for now ^_^ Wow, sounds like a full house. I hope you had a wonderful Holiday season! I love chocolate . . . especially the really good kind. I like the Lindor Truffles Madame gives us in French . . . Yum! ^_^
Soulsearcher Ironforge - Hey! Thank you very much for the review! I'm watching The Simpsons right now ^_^ I love that show! I like your way of describing Relena and Sally! It was Sally though. I mentioned her name a few times ^_^;; The comments were great, and I'm glad you found it again. The kiss was in chapter 14, wasn't it? I'm pretty sure, but I'm glad you're all caught up now! And of course I'll put you on the mailing list! Well, thanks again!
Dyna- Hi! Wow, I haven't seen you in a while, but it's great to get another review from you, so thank you very much ^_^ And yes, that sounds like a very appropriate way to sum up SSR. I hope this wasn't a long wait!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Polls!
On going:
What ice cream flavor would each of the Gboys be?
Which character on Gundam Wing would you like to marry the most?
What instrument would the characters play in band (any band)?
What is your favorite Wufei pairing that won't interfere with the ones I have in this fic already?
Vacation time! Well not in the REAL world, but that's okay ^_~ Where and which characters would you like to take on vacation? Have fun imagining!
Does Relena deserve to be bashed? An explanation would also be great!
New Poll: Why do you like yaoi? An explanation here would also be great!
Mailing list - You guys know the drill! If you want to be notified via email about my updates leave an email and a name ^_^ I don't know if anyone wants on it anymore, but it's still open.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
And Voila! It's actually done! This is a longer chapter than usual. It's around ten pages with spacing in between paragraphs ^_^ I haven't been writing long chapters lately. I hope everyone had wonderful holidays! And I hope you guys liked it! I think it was - okay. It would be fabulous if you left a review!
