This chapter was revised as well. I am rather proud of it though. There weren't many grammatical errors that I could find. As usual, the usual disclaimer applies. I own some copies of Gundam Wing and Sailor Moon manga but sadly, not the legal rights to anything.

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Angels Can Bleed

By Sarien (ChibiSarien@netscape.net)

Chapter One: Comforting You

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~~~~+Dream+~~~~

The angel Makoto began to sing an ethereal lullaby. The dream wasn't hers. She was inside of Shinosaki's dream. His dreams were vivid for a two year old and were one of the many times that Makoto comforted him

Shinosaki was crawling atop a pile of toys, playing greedily with all of them and stuffing his face with sweets. He appeared to have been occupied…until the angel's song reached his ears. He timidly crawled to where he thought the source of the voice was.

Chibi Shinosaki saw her reflection on a pond. He knew she could be a source of comfort. Her serene face and hypnotic voice were compelling.

He traced her reflection back to the source. She was standing on a stone. Her auburn hair was loose from its previous ponytail and waved wildly in the wind. The angel was wearing a light green gown, which also swayed with the wind. Strangely he didn't feel any wind. Makoto's emerald eyes were like two sparkling gems. Of course little Shinosaki didn't think this in so many words. 'Pwetty,' he said, the first semblance of a more mature vocabulary.

The tenshi didn't appear to notice the toddler's presence until he tugged on her dress. She stopped singing and gave the toddler a smile. He giggled and raised his hands to be lifted up. Makoto complied and swung him about. Shinosaki laughed jubilantly.

After awhile he seemed to tire of the game and they both sat down on the pond, Chibi Shino on the angel's lap.

"You know Chibi Shino, I didn't know at first why the creators wanted me here. I thought that they had grown tired of me. That was silly of me, wasn't it?" she asked the child who only burped in response. She continued on as if the toddler had replied.

"I still don't know why, I guess. The one thing I do know is that you've filled my unlife with much joy. I'll always be there for you Shinosaki." He was silent as if he had understood her vow.

She continued her song until he seemed to relax.

~~~~+End of Dream+~~~~

That was the last such dream meeting that they had for some time. Her duty as an archangel monopolized most of her time.

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It took forever for Makoto to 'get out of work.' The gala was a huge success, even though it took nearly a week in planning. Minako even lent her a special mirror to see Shinosaki through but Makoto rarely had the chance to take advantage of it.

Now she was supervising the lesser angels in clean up. But something had been bothering her; something felt out of place. The last time she saw Shinosaki through the mirror had been at the start of the gala. She must have been thinking awfully hard because when she looked up she saw the creator Serenity staring at her.

"What happened Mako-chan? You looked like you were spacing out," she said, concerned. "Um, sorry Serenity I was just thinking. Will it be okay for me to take a trip down to earth?"

The creator studied Makoto for a moment; her crystal eyes glowed as she contemplated. 'Perhaps she can really look into the future,' Makoto wondered. "Um…I guess so. But while you are down there you have to run a few errands for me. I would have a lesser angel do it but you've only been down once and you need the experience. I'll have somebody contact you when your errand is done."

"Arigatou Serenity-sama. I'll leave right away." Makoto took off.

"But Makoto. We're not done cleaning up!" Serenity called after her. Makoto pretended no to hear. "Ohhh, that girl!" Serenity said while shaking her head.

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As she flew over colony L1, Makoto used the link that she had established a link with Shinosaki. It wasn't very strong but she used it to find him though finding him was difficult through all of the dense black smoke. "Smoke! What's going on?" She spiraled down and surveyed the damage to the already damaged colony.

Giant metal creatures, called Mobile Suits, were everywhere. She looked at the carnage below her. 'Hotaru must be having a field day,' the calmer part of her thought while the other part was still frozen.

Makoto landed at the giant charred spot that was the former home of Shinosaki. A strange sensation passed through her. She looked around and saw that a newspaper had glided through her body. Bending over and looking at the date, she gasped.

L1, year 185

Her knees buckled as she fought for air. How could five years have passed since she witnessed his birth? How? Shinosaki could be dead for all she knew. 'No, he's not dead and you know it,' the sane part of her thought. 'Time passes differently between the heavens and Earth.'

A faint sobbing sound could be heard.

"Is that a child? It could be Shinosaki!" she exclaimed and glided to where the source of the voice was.

A little boy was huddled in a corner. His hair was disheveled, pajamas torn, and the teddy bear he held was half charred. The only things that the angel recognized were his eyes; a deep Prussian blue. She closed her eyes and refused to believe that this broken child was her energetic charge.

She hugged him…or at least tried to. Her open hands passed right through the little boy. He didn't even appear to have noticed her. The only recognition she got from his was a release of anxiety. Her presence was some comfort to him, despite the fact he couldn't notice her.

She held on to that shred of their former relationship and struggled not to cry.

"He…he doesn't see me anymore. He's one of them now!" she cried.

Makoto might have been innocent but she wasn't that naive. The boy had lost his innocence. All this destruction had forced such childish beliefs of angels and mystical creatures out of his head. The thing that hurt the most to Mako was that fact. Her ire grew towards whoever started this war, uncharacteristic of a normal angel…yet her whole existence wasn't normal.

Something moved in the rubble behind them. Shinosaki didn't even turn. His eyes were desolate and strangely out of place from his eight year old face. She yearned to comfort him further but there was the matter of the intruder to attend to.

A man stepped from behind the charred remnants of their front yard tree. The tire from the swing was burnt and filled the air with an acid-like scent.

The man was middle aged, at least 40 or so. His hair was already going gray at the edges. The wrinkles around his mouth said he frowned a lot or was under a lot of stress. He was dressed in a trench coat, sunglasses and a scarf. It was cold out but the angel suspected that he used the scarf to hide scars.

This man rose Makoto's hackles. Oh, how she loathed him already. But this raised the question, who the hell was this man and what was he doing approaching her charge. 'Something no good,' Makoto thought and fiercely wished she could protect Shinosaki physically.

The man knelt by Shinosaki and laid a falsely comforting arm on the boy's shoulder. "Are you all right?" the man asked. Chibi Shinosaki glanced at the man coldly and didn't say anything. The fact that there were no tears on the boy's face seemed to delight him.

Makoto felt another presence at her side, not human. She turned and saw Hotaru. "He reeks of death," her friend whispered. Makoto's eyes widened. Now that her assumptions were confirmed, she did not want this man here…but there wasn't a thing she could do.

"Do you know who he is?"

"He's an assassin. Odin Lowe is the name most of his victims scream out, begging for mercy."

Hotaru squeezed Makoto's hand reassuringly. "It's going to be alright. He will not kill the boy," she said and disappeared as abruptly as she came.

The fact that the man wouldn't kill her charge eased some of her anger but she wasn't one to be placated that easily.

"Do you want to come home with me kid? I've got lots of toys you can play with and I can teach you how to fight, so you can be big and strong and destroy the bad men who did this to your family," he said softly. Shinosaki's eyes brightened a little. Apparently he was mature enough at his age to know what revenge meant.

Makoto clenched her teeth. 'How dare this Odin Lowe use the tragedy as some sort of recruiting service! My Shinosaki would never join him!' she said.

Her heart fell as the little boy took the man's hand and followed him away. "Shinosaki," she whispered, crestfallen. The angel dared not follow them. Her cries would go unheard, leading to more heartache, if you even believed angels had hearts. 'I may not be able to touch you or to comfort you like other humans can, but we have dreams…we have our dreams.'

It wasn't much but it was all they had…

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If you're a first time reader, I hope you enjoy this story. Reviews are appreciated, especially ones with more then one sentence. ^__^