Lost Memories
Part Four: The Homecoming
By: Deadly_Leo
Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN GUNDAM WING!! Everything in italics is a memory. Also, science is not my best subject, so if my explanation of how snow is made is wrong, please tell me how to fix it.
~*~*~*~ "Did you take the pictures?" Jamison asked his brother over the phone. He was sitting at his computer waiting for his brother to upload and send him the pictures he had taken that day.
"Yeah, I'm sending them now," Tom said as he hooked up his digital camera and uploaded the pictures onto his computer. He hit send and listened to the automated ding and message saying the file had been sent.
"Did you get them?" Tom asked his brother.
"Yeah, I'm looking at them now," Nick said as he opened his mail folder and clicked "new mail." He opened the file and watched as pictures appeared before his eyes.
He saw Une sitting by a bed, and in it was Treize. He saw Une talking and then a blurred movement as Treize tried to sit up.
"These are perfect," Jamison said as he decided to print them. He could give them to Armsfield later.
"Thanks Tom. I hope that you didn't have to go through too much trouble to get them. Look I have to go now, but I'll talk to you later. Bye!" he said as he listened to his brother say 'goodbye' and hung up the phone. The pictures where perfect. They would prove that Treize was alive.
~*~*~*~ "Is he ready?" Une asked Dr. O'Neil as the pair walked down the hallway.
"The initial tests have been run and he his physically ready to leave. Someone still needs to explain to him who he is and tell him about his life. Would you like to do it?" he asked as they stopped outside of Treize's door.
"Yes, I think I can handle this," she said as she turned the doorknob and stepped into the well-lit room.
~*~*~*~ "Hello," Treize said. He was sitting in a chair near the window, looking out at all of the people. Some clothing had been found for him and he was dressed and ready to go.
"You are the woman from earlier, aren't you?" he asked.
"Yes, did they tell you your name?" Une asked as she took a chair and placed it next to Treize's.
"Yes," Treize said.
"Did they tell you my name and who I am?" Une asked.
"No," he said with a hint of sadness. He felt that he should remember, but he couldn't.
"My name is Lady Khushrenada, and I am your wife," Une said slowly. "My wife? How long have we been married?" he asked quizzically, as he turned sharply to look at her.
"A year and a half. I don't suppose that they told you what your former occupation was?" she said as she also turned in her seat to look at him.
"No, they didn't. Why?" he asked.
"You should make yourself comfortable. This is going to take a while," she said as she began to explain to Treize his life story.
~*~*~*~ "Colonel, I have something that you might like to see," Lieutenant Jamison said as he entered Colonel Armsfield's office.
"What is it? I'm extremely busy," Armsfield said as he put down the report that he was reviewing.
"You know those photos that my brother was asked to take? Well, here they are," Jamison said as he removed a folder from under his arm.
He walked to the other side of the room and placed the manila folder in front of Armsfield then sat in a chair opposite his superior as Armsfield opened the folder and began to rifle through the contents.
"So Treize is really alive?" Armsfield asked as he picked up one of the photos. It was one of Une heading towards the door. She was crying.
"Yep, and these prove it. What should we do? Should I contact the press?" Jamison inquired. "Are you insane? That would completely defeat our organization's purpose. We cannot let anyone else know about this. Alert the rest of Chaos, tell them that I will be calling a meeting soon to discuses what move to take next. In the mean time I think I will pay a visit to Colonel Une and see how things are at the Khushrenada estate," he said with a smirk as he closed the folder and handed it back to Jamison.
"Yes sir," Jamison said as he stood to leave.
Jamison closed the door on his way out and walked down the disserted Specials hallway. He and Colonel Armsfield were the only two there. Most of the Specials forces would return from space and from Christmas vacation after the holidays to clear out their desks.
The Lieutenant sat at his desk and picked up the receiver to the phone and dialed nine for an outside line.
"Hello," the young man said as another man on the other end answered, "this is Lieutenant Jamison. Colonel Armsfield asked me to contact you and inform you that a meeting will be held soon to discuss urgent business," Jamison finished, waiting for a reply.
"I understand. Contact me later with more details," the other man commanded.
"I will. Goodnight sir," the Lieutenant said as he hung up the phone.
He had other calls to make before the night was over. In a few days the same group of men would gather in the same room to discuses the same topic: how to eliminate Treize Khushrenada and Colonel Une so that they might have control of the world.
~*~*~*~ "I did all that?" Treize asked with shock, as he turned away from Une to look despairingly out the window.
"I killed all of those people?" he asked again.
He had been shocked to learn the details of his military carrier. Thousands had died for him, and he had personally planned the death of others.
"Treize, they died for your cause," Une said gently as placed her hand over his, watching as he turned to look down at their hands and then up at her.
"They fought for a cause that they believed in," Une said continuing, "They believed in you and all that you stood for. We were all fighting for the same thing. We were all fighting for peace. Those who died, did so with honor," she said finishing.
"Maybe so, but I planned the deaths of innocent men. I had them sanctioned to death in the name of my cause. People died for me. People died because of me!" he exclaimed.
He couldn't understand how he could something so callous. How he could kill so many innocent people, and allow so many innocent people to die for him.
He couldn't remember his motivation. He couldn't remember any feelings that he had, except one. He couldn't remember anything except this one thing: he loved Une.
"Treize, you didn't like doing what you did, I know that you didn't, but you did what you thought that you had to do. It wasn't easy for you, it wasn't easy for any of us, but you did what you had to do to bring about peace," she finished.
She could see that this wasn't going to be easy for him, or for her. She could only imagine what it was like to not remember anything that had every happened to you, then to need to have someone explain you life to you and not be able to feel the same emotions, to recall your own thoughts. It had to be very dark and very lonely.
"Lady, you said that we are married, but that is all you have told me about our life together. There has to be more," Treize said.
"Well," Une said sitting back in her chair, " We were married on Sunday, June 3, AC 194. We took our honeymoon in Italy. We saw Tuscany, Rome, Florence, and Venice. Our daughter, Hotaru, was conceived in November and was born Tuesday August 12th AC 195 at three twenty-one in the morning after 6 hours of labor. You were stationed in space for a few months right after Hotaru was born. Basically those are all the highlights, other then that it has been a relatively normal marriage," she said, finishing.
"Sounds interesting," Treize said with a weak smile, "I can't remember any of it. The doctor didn't tell me if my memory would ever return. Did he say anything to you?" he asked hopefully.
"No, he didn't say much to me either," Une said sadly, "Well are you ready to go? Our transport to Earth leaves in twenty minutes," Une said with a slightly happier note. She would be glad to leave the hospital. Hospitals depressed her.
'This is depressing enough, having to watch him struggle with this. I want the old Treize back,' Une thought as she rose from her chair.
"Yes, I'm ready. So, we don't live on the colony?" Treize asked as he followed Une to the door, then stopped as she opened the door and looked up and down the hallway.
It was deserted.
"Who are you looking for?" Treize whispered in Une's ear.
"I'm checking to make sure that no one is in the hallway. We can't let anyone see you," she said, as she stepped into the hallway and motioned for her husband to follow.
"Why can't anyone see me and why are we taking the stairs, and why haven't you answered my first question!" Treize asked as he watched Une walk to the stair door and pull it open, clearly waiting for him to go before her.
"Ugh, I will answer all of your questions when we are in the car, until then just let me get you out of the hospital, ok?" Une said completely exasperated.
'This is going to be like handling a child,' Une thought as Treize walked in front of her and began down the stairs, 'A very large child that is absolutely amazing and can take my breath away with a smile,' she continued to think as the pair came to the first floor landing and stopped.
Treize began to open the door, but was stopped as Une put one hand on his arm and brought the other's index finger to her smiling lips.
"Follow me," Une mouthed as she brought both of her hands to her sides and peaked out the door, then motioned for Treize to follow before disappearing into the hallway.
'Dear Jesus,' Treize thought exhaling slowly, and then followed through the stair door and again through another door next to the stairs and into an ally.
'What it happening to me?' he thought, noticing the way his body had reacted to Une's touch. He was now finding it hard to concentrate on anything but Une.
He was beginning to see Une in ways that the old Treize had. He was noticing subtle curves, the rise and fall of her voice, the pale color of her cheeks, how soft her hair looked, and.
"Treize, are you paying any attention to me?" Une asked turning to look at her husband.
"Yes, but not to what you are saying," he said with a mischievous smile.
"Well try. The car is over this way," she said with a smile of her own, leading him to a silver sports car.
'Some things will never change,' Une thought as she opened the driver side door, pressed the 'unlock' button and buckled her seatbelt, watching as Treize climbed in and did the same.
"Now that we are in the car, will you answer my questions?" Treize asked, watching as Une started the car and began to pull out of the parking lot.
"Alright, ask as many questions as you like," Une replied as she pulled the car onto the highway and took the exit marked 'spaceport.'
"Ok, first question is why did we just sneak out of the hospital?" he inquired.
"Because, if anyone was to see you, who knows what might happen. People were fiercely loyal to you, if any of them knew that you were alive, they might try to start an uprising. We have achieved peace Treize, but it is very fragile at this moment," Une said as she turned right towards the spaceport terminal.
"From now on we must be very careful when it comes to the people who see you. There are only a few people who know that you are alive. Most of them think that you are someone else. The house staff will have to be told, but I know that they will not say anything. Here we are," Une said as she parked the car in the lot, fifty feet away from the terminal.
"Well that explains that. Next question, what is Earth like?" Treize asked as Lady took the key out of the ignition and opened her car door. Treize followed.
"Why don't I let you decide that for yourself," Lady said with a smile as the two of them walked the length of the car and paused as Lady opened the trunk and heaved one of her two suitcases in each hand and began to walk
"Let me take those," Treize said, silencing Une's protest with a broad, beautiful smile.
She had never been able to resist him, especially when he smiled.
"Lets go, I still have to return the rental car," Une said with an equally charming smile, as Treize followed behind her with the luggage.
~*~*~*~ "Ready to go?' Une asked Treize, as she seated herself next to him ten minutes later.
They had returned the rental car, stowed away the luggage and were now seated on a private transport to earth.
"Yes, I think so," Trieze. He had been concentrating on something ever since the parking lot. He had been concentrating on Une's smile. He thought that it might be a memory.
'She doesn't smile much at work,' a little voice in Treize's head said.
"Where did that come from?" Treize whispered to himself with a perplexed look, a moment before Lady spoke.
"The shuttle is about take off. Buckle your self in," she said, hearing the engine's start.
"Treize, is anything the matter?" Une asked, noticing the look on her husband's face.
"No, I just." he said, trailing off.
He wasn't sure what had just happened. He didn't want to say anything unless he was sure that it was a memory. He didn't want to offend Une with things that were just ideas.
"Treize, we have never keep things from each other, I do not think that now is the time to start," she said, giving him an encouraging smile.
"I think that I just remembered something," Treize said turning in his seat to look at Une, "You don't smile much at work, do you?" he asked gently.
"I am very glad that you are remembering things so soon. This is a very good sign. To answer your question no, I suppose I don't," Une said as she felt the shuttle begin to rumble, "The shuttle is taking off. We will be home in a few hours," she said as the shuttle gates opened and the shuttle lurched forward through them.
"Open your window," Une said with a smile. She wanted him to see the Earth that he had loved so much. She hoped that it would bring back some of his memories.
"It's beautiful," Treize said, mystified.
"You loved Earth," Une said as she too turned to look out Treize's window.
"I think I still do," Treize said, still looking out of the window, "I still do."
~*~*~*~ "Well, this is Earth. Welcome," Une said as she and Treize walked out the shuttle terminal to await a cab. "It's beautiful," Treize said, as tiny shiver made it's way through his body.
"What is all of this white powder?" he asked, looking at the glistening snow that covered the artificially illuminated ground.
"That is snow. It is made of water that condenses in the clouds when the temperature is thirty-two degrees Fahrenheit or below. See," Une said pointing to the black sky, as more snow began to silently swirl around them.
Due to time differences, it was now close to two o'clock in the morning.
"Wow. Does it snow all the time?" Treize asked as a yellow cab pulled in front of them.
"No, just at certain times of the year, and it doesn't snow in all places. Like I said, only when the temperature is thirty-two degrees or below," Une said as Treize placed the luggage in the now open trunk.
Closing it he opened one of the car doors for Lady, watching as she climbed into the vehicle, before doing so himself.
"Thirty-two degrees is very cold," Treize said as Une gave the driver directions to the estate.
"I know," Une said with a small smile, as she began to run her hands up and down her arms in a weak attempt to warm them.
"Here, let me help," Treize said placing one arm around Lady's shoulders and his hands on her arms, as he continued the process that Une had begun.
"Are you warmer?" Treize asked, smiling.
"Yes, thank you. Now sit back and relax, it is going to be a long drive home," Lady said reclining her head, as Treize removed his arm from around her and began to stare out the window, looking on as they drove through a silver snow covered forest.
She was warm, but not just because the cold had been rubbed from her. She was warm from her husband's touch. She was warm simply because he had touched her.
'The old Treize would not have removed his arm from around me. The old Treize would have found some reason to continue to touch me. If he only knew how romantic he used to be,' Lady thought, glancing at Treize, 'but this is not the old Treize. This is a new one, one that can't remember anything about his life. Still, I love him, but I guess his love does not live on,' Lady thought as she looked out her window.
Treize desperately wanted to touch his wife again. It had felt so right to be so close to her, but he wasn't sure that he should, he wasn't sure that it would be proper to do so.
'I am not sure of anything,' Treize thought as the cab cleared the forest and began driving along a country road that wound it's way towards the sea.
'I am not sure of anything but this, that I love her,' he thought, glancing at Une, who now appeared to be sleeping, 'I do love her.' To Be Continued.
Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN GUNDAM WING!! Everything in italics is a memory. Also, science is not my best subject, so if my explanation of how snow is made is wrong, please tell me how to fix it.
~*~*~*~ "Did you take the pictures?" Jamison asked his brother over the phone. He was sitting at his computer waiting for his brother to upload and send him the pictures he had taken that day.
"Yeah, I'm sending them now," Tom said as he hooked up his digital camera and uploaded the pictures onto his computer. He hit send and listened to the automated ding and message saying the file had been sent.
"Did you get them?" Tom asked his brother.
"Yeah, I'm looking at them now," Nick said as he opened his mail folder and clicked "new mail." He opened the file and watched as pictures appeared before his eyes.
He saw Une sitting by a bed, and in it was Treize. He saw Une talking and then a blurred movement as Treize tried to sit up.
"These are perfect," Jamison said as he decided to print them. He could give them to Armsfield later.
"Thanks Tom. I hope that you didn't have to go through too much trouble to get them. Look I have to go now, but I'll talk to you later. Bye!" he said as he listened to his brother say 'goodbye' and hung up the phone. The pictures where perfect. They would prove that Treize was alive.
~*~*~*~ "Is he ready?" Une asked Dr. O'Neil as the pair walked down the hallway.
"The initial tests have been run and he his physically ready to leave. Someone still needs to explain to him who he is and tell him about his life. Would you like to do it?" he asked as they stopped outside of Treize's door.
"Yes, I think I can handle this," she said as she turned the doorknob and stepped into the well-lit room.
~*~*~*~ "Hello," Treize said. He was sitting in a chair near the window, looking out at all of the people. Some clothing had been found for him and he was dressed and ready to go.
"You are the woman from earlier, aren't you?" he asked.
"Yes, did they tell you your name?" Une asked as she took a chair and placed it next to Treize's.
"Yes," Treize said.
"Did they tell you my name and who I am?" Une asked.
"No," he said with a hint of sadness. He felt that he should remember, but he couldn't.
"My name is Lady Khushrenada, and I am your wife," Une said slowly. "My wife? How long have we been married?" he asked quizzically, as he turned sharply to look at her.
"A year and a half. I don't suppose that they told you what your former occupation was?" she said as she also turned in her seat to look at him.
"No, they didn't. Why?" he asked.
"You should make yourself comfortable. This is going to take a while," she said as she began to explain to Treize his life story.
~*~*~*~ "Colonel, I have something that you might like to see," Lieutenant Jamison said as he entered Colonel Armsfield's office.
"What is it? I'm extremely busy," Armsfield said as he put down the report that he was reviewing.
"You know those photos that my brother was asked to take? Well, here they are," Jamison said as he removed a folder from under his arm.
He walked to the other side of the room and placed the manila folder in front of Armsfield then sat in a chair opposite his superior as Armsfield opened the folder and began to rifle through the contents.
"So Treize is really alive?" Armsfield asked as he picked up one of the photos. It was one of Une heading towards the door. She was crying.
"Yep, and these prove it. What should we do? Should I contact the press?" Jamison inquired. "Are you insane? That would completely defeat our organization's purpose. We cannot let anyone else know about this. Alert the rest of Chaos, tell them that I will be calling a meeting soon to discuses what move to take next. In the mean time I think I will pay a visit to Colonel Une and see how things are at the Khushrenada estate," he said with a smirk as he closed the folder and handed it back to Jamison.
"Yes sir," Jamison said as he stood to leave.
Jamison closed the door on his way out and walked down the disserted Specials hallway. He and Colonel Armsfield were the only two there. Most of the Specials forces would return from space and from Christmas vacation after the holidays to clear out their desks.
The Lieutenant sat at his desk and picked up the receiver to the phone and dialed nine for an outside line.
"Hello," the young man said as another man on the other end answered, "this is Lieutenant Jamison. Colonel Armsfield asked me to contact you and inform you that a meeting will be held soon to discuss urgent business," Jamison finished, waiting for a reply.
"I understand. Contact me later with more details," the other man commanded.
"I will. Goodnight sir," the Lieutenant said as he hung up the phone.
He had other calls to make before the night was over. In a few days the same group of men would gather in the same room to discuses the same topic: how to eliminate Treize Khushrenada and Colonel Une so that they might have control of the world.
~*~*~*~ "I did all that?" Treize asked with shock, as he turned away from Une to look despairingly out the window.
"I killed all of those people?" he asked again.
He had been shocked to learn the details of his military carrier. Thousands had died for him, and he had personally planned the death of others.
"Treize, they died for your cause," Une said gently as placed her hand over his, watching as he turned to look down at their hands and then up at her.
"They fought for a cause that they believed in," Une said continuing, "They believed in you and all that you stood for. We were all fighting for the same thing. We were all fighting for peace. Those who died, did so with honor," she said finishing.
"Maybe so, but I planned the deaths of innocent men. I had them sanctioned to death in the name of my cause. People died for me. People died because of me!" he exclaimed.
He couldn't understand how he could something so callous. How he could kill so many innocent people, and allow so many innocent people to die for him.
He couldn't remember his motivation. He couldn't remember any feelings that he had, except one. He couldn't remember anything except this one thing: he loved Une.
"Treize, you didn't like doing what you did, I know that you didn't, but you did what you thought that you had to do. It wasn't easy for you, it wasn't easy for any of us, but you did what you had to do to bring about peace," she finished.
She could see that this wasn't going to be easy for him, or for her. She could only imagine what it was like to not remember anything that had every happened to you, then to need to have someone explain you life to you and not be able to feel the same emotions, to recall your own thoughts. It had to be very dark and very lonely.
"Lady, you said that we are married, but that is all you have told me about our life together. There has to be more," Treize said.
"Well," Une said sitting back in her chair, " We were married on Sunday, June 3, AC 194. We took our honeymoon in Italy. We saw Tuscany, Rome, Florence, and Venice. Our daughter, Hotaru, was conceived in November and was born Tuesday August 12th AC 195 at three twenty-one in the morning after 6 hours of labor. You were stationed in space for a few months right after Hotaru was born. Basically those are all the highlights, other then that it has been a relatively normal marriage," she said, finishing.
"Sounds interesting," Treize said with a weak smile, "I can't remember any of it. The doctor didn't tell me if my memory would ever return. Did he say anything to you?" he asked hopefully.
"No, he didn't say much to me either," Une said sadly, "Well are you ready to go? Our transport to Earth leaves in twenty minutes," Une said with a slightly happier note. She would be glad to leave the hospital. Hospitals depressed her.
'This is depressing enough, having to watch him struggle with this. I want the old Treize back,' Une thought as she rose from her chair.
"Yes, I'm ready. So, we don't live on the colony?" Treize asked as he followed Une to the door, then stopped as she opened the door and looked up and down the hallway.
It was deserted.
"Who are you looking for?" Treize whispered in Une's ear.
"I'm checking to make sure that no one is in the hallway. We can't let anyone see you," she said, as she stepped into the hallway and motioned for her husband to follow.
"Why can't anyone see me and why are we taking the stairs, and why haven't you answered my first question!" Treize asked as he watched Une walk to the stair door and pull it open, clearly waiting for him to go before her.
"Ugh, I will answer all of your questions when we are in the car, until then just let me get you out of the hospital, ok?" Une said completely exasperated.
'This is going to be like handling a child,' Une thought as Treize walked in front of her and began down the stairs, 'A very large child that is absolutely amazing and can take my breath away with a smile,' she continued to think as the pair came to the first floor landing and stopped.
Treize began to open the door, but was stopped as Une put one hand on his arm and brought the other's index finger to her smiling lips.
"Follow me," Une mouthed as she brought both of her hands to her sides and peaked out the door, then motioned for Treize to follow before disappearing into the hallway.
'Dear Jesus,' Treize thought exhaling slowly, and then followed through the stair door and again through another door next to the stairs and into an ally.
'What it happening to me?' he thought, noticing the way his body had reacted to Une's touch. He was now finding it hard to concentrate on anything but Une.
He was beginning to see Une in ways that the old Treize had. He was noticing subtle curves, the rise and fall of her voice, the pale color of her cheeks, how soft her hair looked, and.
"Treize, are you paying any attention to me?" Une asked turning to look at her husband.
"Yes, but not to what you are saying," he said with a mischievous smile.
"Well try. The car is over this way," she said with a smile of her own, leading him to a silver sports car.
'Some things will never change,' Une thought as she opened the driver side door, pressed the 'unlock' button and buckled her seatbelt, watching as Treize climbed in and did the same.
"Now that we are in the car, will you answer my questions?" Treize asked, watching as Une started the car and began to pull out of the parking lot.
"Alright, ask as many questions as you like," Une replied as she pulled the car onto the highway and took the exit marked 'spaceport.'
"Ok, first question is why did we just sneak out of the hospital?" he inquired.
"Because, if anyone was to see you, who knows what might happen. People were fiercely loyal to you, if any of them knew that you were alive, they might try to start an uprising. We have achieved peace Treize, but it is very fragile at this moment," Une said as she turned right towards the spaceport terminal.
"From now on we must be very careful when it comes to the people who see you. There are only a few people who know that you are alive. Most of them think that you are someone else. The house staff will have to be told, but I know that they will not say anything. Here we are," Une said as she parked the car in the lot, fifty feet away from the terminal.
"Well that explains that. Next question, what is Earth like?" Treize asked as Lady took the key out of the ignition and opened her car door. Treize followed.
"Why don't I let you decide that for yourself," Lady said with a smile as the two of them walked the length of the car and paused as Lady opened the trunk and heaved one of her two suitcases in each hand and began to walk
"Let me take those," Treize said, silencing Une's protest with a broad, beautiful smile.
She had never been able to resist him, especially when he smiled.
"Lets go, I still have to return the rental car," Une said with an equally charming smile, as Treize followed behind her with the luggage.
~*~*~*~ "Ready to go?' Une asked Treize, as she seated herself next to him ten minutes later.
They had returned the rental car, stowed away the luggage and were now seated on a private transport to earth.
"Yes, I think so," Trieze. He had been concentrating on something ever since the parking lot. He had been concentrating on Une's smile. He thought that it might be a memory.
'She doesn't smile much at work,' a little voice in Treize's head said.
"Where did that come from?" Treize whispered to himself with a perplexed look, a moment before Lady spoke.
"The shuttle is about take off. Buckle your self in," she said, hearing the engine's start.
"Treize, is anything the matter?" Une asked, noticing the look on her husband's face.
"No, I just." he said, trailing off.
He wasn't sure what had just happened. He didn't want to say anything unless he was sure that it was a memory. He didn't want to offend Une with things that were just ideas.
"Treize, we have never keep things from each other, I do not think that now is the time to start," she said, giving him an encouraging smile.
"I think that I just remembered something," Treize said turning in his seat to look at Une, "You don't smile much at work, do you?" he asked gently.
"I am very glad that you are remembering things so soon. This is a very good sign. To answer your question no, I suppose I don't," Une said as she felt the shuttle begin to rumble, "The shuttle is taking off. We will be home in a few hours," she said as the shuttle gates opened and the shuttle lurched forward through them.
"Open your window," Une said with a smile. She wanted him to see the Earth that he had loved so much. She hoped that it would bring back some of his memories.
"It's beautiful," Treize said, mystified.
"You loved Earth," Une said as she too turned to look out Treize's window.
"I think I still do," Treize said, still looking out of the window, "I still do."
~*~*~*~ "Well, this is Earth. Welcome," Une said as she and Treize walked out the shuttle terminal to await a cab. "It's beautiful," Treize said, as tiny shiver made it's way through his body.
"What is all of this white powder?" he asked, looking at the glistening snow that covered the artificially illuminated ground.
"That is snow. It is made of water that condenses in the clouds when the temperature is thirty-two degrees Fahrenheit or below. See," Une said pointing to the black sky, as more snow began to silently swirl around them.
Due to time differences, it was now close to two o'clock in the morning.
"Wow. Does it snow all the time?" Treize asked as a yellow cab pulled in front of them.
"No, just at certain times of the year, and it doesn't snow in all places. Like I said, only when the temperature is thirty-two degrees or below," Une said as Treize placed the luggage in the now open trunk.
Closing it he opened one of the car doors for Lady, watching as she climbed into the vehicle, before doing so himself.
"Thirty-two degrees is very cold," Treize said as Une gave the driver directions to the estate.
"I know," Une said with a small smile, as she began to run her hands up and down her arms in a weak attempt to warm them.
"Here, let me help," Treize said placing one arm around Lady's shoulders and his hands on her arms, as he continued the process that Une had begun.
"Are you warmer?" Treize asked, smiling.
"Yes, thank you. Now sit back and relax, it is going to be a long drive home," Lady said reclining her head, as Treize removed his arm from around her and began to stare out the window, looking on as they drove through a silver snow covered forest.
She was warm, but not just because the cold had been rubbed from her. She was warm from her husband's touch. She was warm simply because he had touched her.
'The old Treize would not have removed his arm from around me. The old Treize would have found some reason to continue to touch me. If he only knew how romantic he used to be,' Lady thought, glancing at Treize, 'but this is not the old Treize. This is a new one, one that can't remember anything about his life. Still, I love him, but I guess his love does not live on,' Lady thought as she looked out her window.
Treize desperately wanted to touch his wife again. It had felt so right to be so close to her, but he wasn't sure that he should, he wasn't sure that it would be proper to do so.
'I am not sure of anything,' Treize thought as the cab cleared the forest and began driving along a country road that wound it's way towards the sea.
'I am not sure of anything but this, that I love her,' he thought, glancing at Une, who now appeared to be sleeping, 'I do love her.' To Be Continued.
