When All Purpose Is Lost
When All Purpose Is Lost

By ~*Ai*~Wing

Chapter 9

"Did you know that what you did was truly unacceptable? Not only did you endanger yourselves, but your actions were stupid and heavily prohibited."

She saw the boys in front of her nod.

"You two will be 'grounded' for one month. That means no sign-outs during this period. Also, you are only allowed access to the library, cafeteria and dormitories for two weeks. Do you understand?"

"Yes…" The two boys replied, one monotonously, the other's voice was filled with disappointment.

"You two are dismissed."

They quickly filed out of the office.

"Sorry." Heero muttered to Duo.

"It's ok I guess. It isn't the first time for me. Well, I guess we were lucky she didn't assign us to do clean-up duty." Duo said cheerfully.

"You got your stuff…like uniform, backpack…you know, the essentials for starting school on Monday?" Duo asked as they walked back to their rooms.

"Yeah…I do."

"Alright, so we're all set for school tomorrow. It's gonna be great!" Duo exclaimed.

Is it? Heero wondered. Too much things have been happening lately, too much.

The schoolyard was teeming with teenagers. Most of them were well polished and acting sensibly. Heero had just finished fastening his bike to the bike rail. He gave a sharp tug on his grey blazer. Then he pulled gently on his navy tie.

"Nervous?" Duo asked while he fixed up his own tie.

"No." Heero replied.

"Then why are you tugging at this and pulling at that?" Duo questioned.

"Can't a boy want to look good?" Heero said, almost jokingly.

"You, want to look good? Are you kidding me?" Duo asked with a snort.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever."

"Hey, d'you need help getting to the office?" Duo offered.

"I'll be fine." Heero confirmed.

"Alright then, see you! Hope we have classes together." Duo yelled as he walked away, giving Heero a farewell wave.

Heero proceeded to the main office. It was there that he ran into Relena.

She was wearing the girl's uniform, which consisted of a grey blazer, white blouse and a grey pleated skirt that barely reached her knees. With that, she wore ankle socks and dress shoes. A burgundy tie was around her neck.

"Hi." Relena said.

"Hi." Heero returned the greeting.

They both walked into the office.

The secretary looked up as the two approached the reception desk.

"Yes, how may I help you two?"

"We're new students here." Relena replied for the both of them. Heero nodded in agreement.

"Ok. I'll need you both to fill out these forms." The lady told them.

"But we've already registered." Relena pointed out.

"Have you? Well, I'll need your names then."

"My name is Relena…" Relena whispered.

"Relena…what's your last name?"

"Um…I don't…have one." Relena stuttered, her cheeks flushing.

The secretary gave her weird and questioning look before turning to Heero.

"And what is your name?" She asked.

"Heero Yuy."

"Ok, just wait a second. There, we've got your schedules printed out. Dear, you're lucky we only have one Relena in our school. Why don't you adopt a last name?" The lady commented as she handed them both their schedules.

"Um…yes, I'll consider that option. Thanks." Relena replied, quickly looking away.

Heero also nodded his thanks as they stepped out into the hall.

"So…what classes do you have?" Relena asked Heero to break the tension caused in the office.

"The basics…"

"Well, what do you have first?"

Heero glanced at the sheet in his hands. "Principles of Mathematics."

Relena looked at her sheet too.

"Is your class in room 225?"

"Yes."

"Me, too. Great, we'll be in the same class! At least we'll know each other." Relena said with a smile.

Heero just acknowledged all this with a nod.

The pair started towards the stairs to their first class.

When they arrived at the classroom, they found out that Duo and Hilde were also in their class. After they handed the teacher their slips, they were not allowed to be seated until they introduced themselves.

"Class, may I have your attention? Today, two new students join us. We will start off the class with their self-introductions." He nodded his head at Relena.

"Hello, my name is Relena. Nice to meet all of you." Relena said shyly.

As she stepped back, she felt Heero take a step forward.

"Heero Yuy, it's a pleasure."

"Great, you two may take a seat. Now, class will begin." The mathematics teacher said.

Heero took a seat with Duo and Relena took a seat with Hilde. As Relena walked to the back where Hilde was seated, she felt snickers surround her and stares on her. However, Relena quickly shook away those feelings. I must be scaring myself. Most of my bruises have faded and the ones that haven't, I've covered with make-up. They have nothing to laugh about…right?

Class itself, was very boring. Hilde started gossiping with Relena. Duo started throwing paper balls and making faces when the teacher had his back turned. Not many paid any attention; most of them were sleeping, gossiping or laughing at Duo.

Actually, no one paid attention to class, other than Heero. He didn't really need to do so; the material wasn't all that hard. But he had nothing else better to do. Doing work was better than wasting time laughing at Duo's stupid jokes, or gossiping about the latest news around school.

Finally, class was over. The rest of the school day practically dragged on. Relena had noticed that she was in all of Hilde's classes and three of Heero's and Duo's. That fact made her feel slightly more comfortable, even if she had only met them during the past few days.

After classes, the boys met the girls at the quad to go back to the shelter. When Relena and Hilde got there, Heero and Duo were already there. Suddenly, a phone rang. Turns out it was Heero's cell phone.

"Hello."

"It's Trowa."

"Is anything wrong?"

"Yes…your father came to school looking for you."

"What did he do?"

"He started bitching about how you are a bastard…stuff like that."

"Damn! Would you please apologize to the principal for me?"

"Sure. Good thing you changed schools."

"Did he cause any trouble for you?"

"No. He was so drunk he didn't even recognize me."

"If he keeps up this shit, notify me ASAP."

"No problem."

With that, Heero hung up.

"OH MY GOD! What the hell did you do to your phone? It looks so damn cool!" Duo exclaimed.

"I told you. When I'm done with this, it'll look better than the newest model." Heero said slyly.

"You have certainly convinced me, buddy! I mean look at this…it's smaller than my palm, the colours are cool, it's lightweight…mind if you would turn my ratty bike into a MTB?" Duo inquired.

"I don't think I'll be able to do much to your…bike." Heero commented.

"It's been with me for years." Duo said defensively.

"Hey, guys. Mind if we get going?" Hilde asked the two with an annoyed tone.

"Sure babe. Anything for you!" Duo said with a droll grin.

Hilde just rolled her eyes as she took Relena's hand and led her out of the schoolyard. The boys then went to get their bikes and followed slowly behind the girls. When the foursome got back to the shelter, the girls and boys went their separate ways back to their rooms.

"You know Hilde? You can hang out with Duo if you want. I mean you don't have to feel like it's your responsibility to look after me." Relena told Hilde.

"Are you sure? I mean, you still aren't familiar with the place." Hilde asked.

"Well, then it's time for me to do some exploring on my own." Relena reassured Hilde.

"Ok, thanks Relena!" Hilde exclaimed as she jumped up to give Relena a hug. Then she was out of the door like a bullet. Relena sighed. She wished she could be as carefree as Hilde. She wished she could put down all the burdens from the past and live a normal life like she always wanted. However, there were always consequences, results to occurrences. She knew she would somehow heal…with time. Nothing to do…I guess I should do my assignments. Relena thought as she plopped down in front of the desk she and Hilde shared and started on her work.

Knock, knock, knock. Soft knocks were heard on the door. Heero looked up from his work to answer the door. He opened it up to find Hilde there.

"Hi Heero, is Duo here?" Hilde asked with a smile.

"Wait a sec." Heero told her as he went to get Duo.

"Duo! Get out of that washroom!" Heero hollered.

"Hold your horses, man!" Duo yelled back.

"Hilde's at the door!" Heero called through the bathroom door.

At that remark, the door flew open. Heero had to suppress a chuckle.

"Really? Are you just tricking me to get me out of there?" Duo asked suspiciously.

"No. She's really at the door." Heero answered, wanting to roll his eyes.

"Oh crap, and I'm looking like a piece of shit!" Duo cried.

"Just go take care of your girlfriend."

"Do I look really, really bad?" Duo asked worriedly.

"No, now go!" Heero had to practically shove Duo towards the door.

"Ok, ok. I got the message…Hey babe, what's up?" Duo's tone changed quickly at the sight of Hilde.

"Well, I just wanted to know if you're free to just, you know, hang out?" Hilde offered.

"Of course! I always have time for you, Hilde." Duo said in a suave tone. Hilde giggled.

"Let's go, then!" Hilde said, dragging Duo out of the door.

"Bye Heero! See ya later!" Duo called back to Heero as the door shut.

What a funny couple. Heero thought as he turned back to his work.

Relena stretched out her arms as she finished the last page of math exercises. She was finally done all of her homework. What could she do with the time remaining? It wasn't time for dinner yet. Maybe I can check out the shelter's garden… Relena pondered on the thought. She had heard many residents talk about the beautiful garden at the back of the shelter. She just hadn't had the time to check it out yet. What a perfect time to do so. She thought. So then, she got her windbreaker and headed out the door, her destination being the mysterious garden.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~* *~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

It was a beautiful, crisp afternoon. He took in big breath of cool, fresh air. The wind slightly tousled his unruly, brown hair. Heero was glad he came out for this walk. It was true; the garden had a magnificent beauty to it. Finally, Heero decided to tackle the hedge maze way at the back of the garden. He didn't mind a good challenge. It took Heero a whole fifteen minutes before he found his way to the centre of the humungous maze. It was certainly worth the time used to find his way through the maze; the sight was astounding! An elegant oak bench was situated under a large, magnificent maple tree. A miniature rose garden was to the left. To the right was a birdbath surrounded by lavenders and goldenrods; planted neatly in rows and sections. The sweet aroma of the flowers filled the air. Heero was pleased that he thought of bringing along a good novel as he decided to sit down on the bench and spend his time before dinner there. As soon as he sat down, he tackled his fantasy novel hungrily. Not long after he started reading did he hear a slight clearing of the throat. Heero glanced up quickly and caught the sight of wisps of honey blond hair.

"May I sit down?" The melodious voice asked.

"It's a free country, do as you please." Heero replied coldly, noting that the voice belonged to Relena-without-a-last-name.

Relena sat down gently beside Heero on the bench. She took note of the book in his hands.

"I didn't know you enjoyed fantasy novels." She commented, trying to start polite conversation.

"They're ok." Heero said.

"So, how did you find the first day of school?" Relena asked timidly.

"Good." Heero simply replied.

"It's a nice school isn't it?" Relena asked.

Heero nodded.

"And this shelter, it's very nice…nicer than any home I've belonged to for a long time." Relena muttered.

"I agree." Heero said, startling Relena.

"I see. You came here because home wasn't pleasant for you either?" Relena questioned Heero, suddenly feeling brave.

"No, it wasn't unpleasant." Heero told her.

"No?"

"It was hellish." He said in a grave tone.

"Do you…did you…ever wonder why I don't have a last name." Relena asked nervously.

"I guess for a second. Didn't want to embarrass you though." Heero admitted.

"Well, it's because…I don't want my father to be my father. I didn't want to take on the same name as that monster."

"He still is your father."

"No he isn't!!!"

That statement caused Heero's eyebrows to rise slightly.

"Who is 'he' then?" Heero inquired as he felt his curiosity rising.

"He…is the monster that turned my life upside down…" Relena whispered. A moment of awkward silence passed before Relena continued.

"He took me away from my loving family when I was only four…I don't know why the hell he did so, but he did. After that, the endless abuse started." By now, Relena's eyes had started misting over.

"Surprisingly, my life was not much better than yours." Heero said bitterly.

Relena looked up as a stray tear trailed down her tender cheek.

Heero looked down at the grass. He couldn't face Relena for some reason…it was all too hard.

"I remember one day…when the whole family was actually happy…the day wasn't filled with joy, but no one was yelling and there were smiles here and there. But that was the only 'good' memory from my whole childhood. At least you had four years filled with love before Hell unleashed on you. Ever since I remember, my father would be hitting me, and my mother would also be hit in my defence. It was all a never-ending nightmare I suppose. However, it just got worse when my mother couldn't stand it anymore and left the house…I was five then." Heero felt his whole body slightly tremor as those vivid, dark memories came swirling back into his mind.

"Why didn't your mother take you with her?" Relena asked, hoping that she did not hit a sensitive spot.

"She filed for divorce. At that time, my father actually had a well paying job and he was the owner of the house and such. My mother was qualified to get a good job, but father was a traditional guy and he made her stay home to do 'what a woman was supposed to do'. At that time, she seemed incapable of taking care of a child. As much to his disliking, the court granted my father child custody…why he agreed is still a mystery."

"That means both of us didn't come from wonderful homes. Well, obviously, or we wouldn't be here in the first place." Relena said slyly.

"Well, I know people who run away to shelters. They are really lucky…at least their parents still worry about them. My father only worries that he doesn't have me to boss around like a drudge." Heero said with a sad tinge to his voice.

"Look on the bright side, our painful childhood has enabled us to be more independent. Right?" Relena asked, trying to sound cheerful.

"I guess so." Was all Heero said in reply.

The two continued to sit quietly on the bench, both were deep in thought.

Why did I just open up to a girl who I only met a few days ago. What about her that I feel I can trust…not even Trowa knows the whole of my story. Heero thought. The question in his mind confused him in some way. He wasn't the open sort; he didn't like others knowing his weakness. However, somehow, he felt that Relena would understand… Yes, she would understand. She was in a position similar to mine before…but I didn't exactly open up to Duo. Why? Maybe it's because she seems more understanding and definitely more serious. Is that it?

Beside him, Relena also seemed troubled by something on her mind. Why do I feel so comfortable with Heero. I just let out all my misery in his presence. I've never done so to anyone, not even to Dorothy, nor Hilde. I've only just met him. What is it about this mysterious being that has drawn me to him? I just want to know. However, it does feel good to tell someone how I feel once in a while. Plus, I feel that Heero's the kind that would understand. We did have similar experiences.

Giving up her thoughts, Relena looked up at the sky to find the sun starting to set. She gasped in awe. That caught Heero attention.

"What is it, Relena?" Heero asked.

"Look at the beautiful sunset. The beautiful colours woven between the silver clouds…it's such a breathtaking scene. Do you like sunsets?"

"I don't have much time to enjoy them."

"I love sunsets…it depicts such peacefulness and serenity." Relena replied dreamily.

Heero looked at his watch.

"Talking about sunsets, we'd better head back to be in time for dinner." Heero informed Relena.

"Oh alright. I would have liked to spend more time here." Relena commented with a sigh as she followed Heero back into the maze.

A.N.: Hiya ppl! Long time no see! Anyway, sorry for taking so long to post this chapter. I had a pretty bad case of writer's block to start with, then Fanfiction.net starts being a bitch (no offence) and I can't even get on. Oh well, here it is. Isn't it cute how Heero and Relena confide in each other. Sorry if it's a bit OOC but I tried my best. Thanks again for reading and please R+R!!! Ok, gotta run, until next chapter, over and out. ^_~

Disclaimer: How many times do I have to make this clear? Me no own Gundam Wing! ~_~;;