Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing or any of its affiliates/owners. If I did, I would be lucky. ^_^

It felt like I was swimming. There was darkness everywhere. When I tried opening my eyes, a painfully bright light interrupted my vision of nothingness. I heard, as if from far away, birds chirping, and a soft yet clear voice humming a soothing song. I opened my eyes, ignoring the blinding pain that seared through my head.

Was this heaven? I tried to sit up, but the pain was unbearable. The singing stopped. No, this couldn't be heaven. It hurt too much. I opened my eyes the rest of the way, and when the glare receded, it wasn't fluffy white clouds that I saw, but rather a round face filled with startlingly grey eyes.

"Who . . . who are *you*?" I was still sitting down, but I was on my guard. Had I been caught? If so, who was this girl? Oz, Romafeller? And then . . . how long did I have to live?

*--*

As soon as I felt him stir, I stopped singing and sat back. He was a quick one to awake, especially accounting for his current injuries. However, I wished he wouldn't move, because it had to hurt, and he might break open his wounds that I had so diligently worked to heal. I had run out of painkillers about six hours ago. I had been force-feeding him two pills every couple of hours.

He opened his eyes, blinked for a couple of seconds, then sat up and stared at me. "Who are *you*?"

I hesitated, then answered. "Someone you can trust."

"How do *I* know that?" he asked, his onyx eyes piercing through mine.

I sighed. "I will not harm you. If I had that intention, would not I have done it by now?"

He seemed to ponder that for a moment. "All right. Assuming you don't plan to kill me now, then what of later?"

I was getting irritated, now. "Look . . . I . . . I'm a fellow Gundam pilot . . . on a mission. This is the safehouse I'm staying in. right now, I'm trusting that you won't take your gun right there and shoot me."

*--*

When she said that, I realized that I was only half-clothed. She had nodded to my side, where I found that my gun lay. Thankfully, the girl had removed my shirt, not my pants. A faint blush crept across my cheeks as I found this out, though. At least it's not as bad as it could have been. I grabbed my gun, removed the safety, and pointed it straight at the girl. Her eyes widened, almost comically, then she sighed. "If you're going to kill me, then do it." Her calm almost unnerved me. It was quite like Heero or Duo. She continued, "However, at least tell my your name first."

I hesitated before answering, but my gun never wavered. "WuFei Chang."

*--*

When he pointed the gun at me, I thought I was going to have a stroke. But after that, I was calm. "If you're going to kill me, then do it. However, at least tell me your name, first."

A slight abeyance. "WuFei Chang."

I *knew* that name! And now I recognized him! He was one of Master Long's students. "I . . . ."

He wavered a bit, unsteady on his legs. I wondered if it was because of his injuries. I took a step forward, and opened my mouth to talk, but WuFei beat me to it.

"I . . . I will not harm you," he said finally, closing his eyes. As soon as he did, the gun dropped from his hand and clattered harmlessly to the bare floor. WuFei, however, tumbled backward over a low table, knocking his head on a chair. I cringed at the loud crack I heard, and I knew I had a lot of work ahead of me.

*--*